RESEARCH
RESEARCH ON ASTHMA
A special interest of Dr. Philip George has always been the causes of asthma, and especially, the relationship of asthma and diet.
Between 100 to 175 million people around the globe suffer from asthma and that number is rising. Worldwide deaths from asthma have reached 180,000 annually.
How is Asthma Diagnosed?
Any or all of the following may be done to diagnose asthma:
• Take a detailed family history. Asthma can run in families.
• Do a physical exam.
• Do any or all of the following tests: X-ray, blood test, sputum study, allergy pricks skin test, Spirometry, exercise challenge test, breathing patterns study.
Asthma Medications
Health care professionals may prescribe the following medications for asthma:
• Anti-inflammatory medications
• Bronchodilator medication
• Inhalation devices
Common Sense Remedies
It is always better to avoid illness altogether than to take medications for illness, so the most important element of asthma control is to get rid of asthma triggers.
The following rules will help reduce asthma symptoms:
1. Keep living quarters and vehicles free of dust, fumes, and animal dander.
Bear in mind that fabrics, especially fuzzy and furry ones, tend to trap allergens. Many asthma sufferers find they have fewer symptoms if they live with bare wood or tile floors in their homes instead of carpets, with blinds on their windows instead of curtains, and with simple slick coverings on car seats instead of fuzzy car seat covers.
1. Use dust proof covers on pillows and mattresses.
These will help to keep allergens from infiltrating the pillow and mattress fillings and also keep allergens that may already present within the bedding from irritating the sleeper.
2. Regularly vacuum carpets, rugs, and furniture.
If possible, use a High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filter on your vacuum cleaner and change or wash the filter often.
3. Keep sinks, tables, and floors clean.
Mold and decaying food can trigger asthma symptoms.
4. Store food in airtight containers.
5. Cover trash cans.
6. Keep pets outside the house.
7. Eat food hours before going to bed to avoid digestive problems.
8. Try to sleep in large rooms with good ventilation.
9. Take a shower before you go to bed to rid yourself of dust and allergens that have collected on skin and hair during the day.
10. Keep ears and noses as dry as possible.
11. Exercise to build breathing strength and maintain good circulation.
Swimming can be particularly beneficial. There’s one exception to exercise: if cold air triggers your asthma symptoms, take caution not to overdo outdoor activities on cold days.
12. Do not use perfumes, eau de toilette (toilet water), or colognes.
13. Do not use scented or powdered cosmetics, personal products, or household products.
This can be a difficult rule to follow because so many products are scented before they are packaged and sold.
Try to avoid or use unscented versions of all of the following:
• body spray
• - hair spray and mousse
• - lip gloss
• - skin lotions and creams, including sunscreen
• - deodorants
• - aftershave lotions
• - room fresheners
• - essential oils
• - bar and liquid soaps
• - shampoo and hair conditioner
• - laundry soaps and fabric softeners
• - kitty litter and other pet products
• - scented candles
• - incense
14. Ask friends and family members not to wear perfumed products when around you.
15. Do not smoke tobacco or marijuana products.
16. Try to avoid spending time in areas where smokers gather now or have gathered in the past.
17. Avoid closed rooms that contain old books, newspapers, and magazines.
Paper dust and mold in pages can trigger asthma.
18. Do not keep plants or flowers in the house.
Pollen from all plants and mold spores in potting soil or decaying plants can be a problem.
19. And finally, the advice I give out the most often: avoid dairy products – milk, cheese, yogurt, butter, ice cream, etc. You’ll find more about this in the next section.
What is Asthma?
Asthma is not a disease. It’s an episodic problem. But asthma is serious. Asthma symptoms range from mild breathing difficulties to deadly conditions.
First of all, asthma is an airway problem, not a lung disease. There are lots of interpretations of asthma.
In general, asthma is a chronic airway condition that can develop at any age or in any population. The following is true of asthma:
1. Asthma is a chronic condition that is characterized by difficulty in breathing.
2. Asthma is a chronic respiratory problem often linked to allergies. Asthma results in increased airway inflammation that causes attacks of wheezing and coughing, chest constriction, and labored breathing.
3. Asthma is a condition characterized by increased responsiveness of the airways to various stimuli. The term used by medical professionals is “Reactive Airway Diseases.”
4. The wheezing, coughing and tightness in the chest in asthma are caused by an inflammation of the bronchioles, the tubes that carry air into the lungs.
Triggers or Inducers of Asthma
If you can identify and treat the cause of any disease, you can cure the disease. So, what causes asthma?
Asthma inducers are the triggers that cause swelling in airways and airways become narrower. Then the airways swollen, red and filled with mucus. If you find out the triggers or the inducers and control these you will never going to get asthma.
Here are some common causes:
• Impure or toxic food
• Air pollution
• Physical and mental stress
• Poor digestion
• Improper metabolism & infection
• Occupational causes
• Smoke
• Cockroach droppings
• Cold air
• Dust
• Lack of exercise
• Inhaled irritants
• Emotional upset
• Animal dander
• Pollen
• Secondhand smoke
• Household chemicals
• Cold air
• Fumes
How Dairy Products Affect Asthma
Dairy products tend to increase mucus formation, and excess mucus can lead to an asthma attack, or worsen asthma symptoms that are already present. The culprit seems to be the protein in milk, and some studies have shown that an undetermined number of people may actually be allergic to this milk protein. The high protein content of dairy foods does not digest quickly, so undigested protein can obstruct the airway. Therefore, dairy products can affect asthma.
In any case, removing milk, cheese, yogurt, ice cream—anything that contains milk or cream—from your diet can reduce or completely eliminate asthma symptoms.
Changing your diet is much simpler and certainly more cost-effective than taking medications and paying doctors and hospitals.
Changing your diet can change your life.
What Causes an Asthma Attack?
The bronchioles become inflamed. The swelling and increased mucus make the airways narrower, leaving less room for the air push to pass through. The muscles around your airways squeeze together and tighten, making your airways even narrower. This is known in the medical world as bronchoconstriction.
