Encouraging your children towards a healthy lifestyle is one of those constant battles we can face as parents. The problem is that when our children are perfectly healthy, there’s no reason from their perspective to feel any better. And of course, kids, for the most part, are full of energy. But when our children have an illness or an ailment, the benefits of helping them to improve symptoms become more apparent to them. Something like asthma is widespread among children, with about 10% to 15% of children suffering from it. Therefore, learning how to improve asthma symptoms in our kids requires a multifaceted approach that involves medication and lifestyle adjustments. Here are some practical approaches to helping your kids.
The Right Dose of Physical Activity
We have to ensure that our children are as healthy as possible, and this includes regular physical activity. It can be easy to be on the side of caution and not encourage our children to exercise in case it results in an asthma flare-up, but we need to find suitable activities to ensure that any symptoms of exercise-induced asthma are properly managed with medication.
Swimming is one of those practices that should be encouraged from the very beginning. Finding swimming lessons for kids is simple, straightforward, and can help children in a number of ways, including:
- Improving aerobic fitness, which is beneficial for individuals with asthma because of how it improves cardiovascular health and lung function.
- The high humidity in a swimming pool can also be beneficial for people with asthma as it helps to keep the airways moist and therefore reduces the likelihood of an asthma attack.
- Swimming is considered to be less likely to trigger asthma symptoms in comparison to land-based activity.
It’s also worth noting that while there are many benefits, some people can be sensitive to chlorine and chemicals used in pools, so we should encourage our children to pay attention to how their body responds.
The Best Foods and Natural Remedies
It is critical to have a healthier lifestyle as an asthmatic. There are so many foods and drinks that can potentially trigger asthma symptoms. For example, milk is considered to trigger asthma symptoms, although some studies have not been able to provide a definite link between the two. While milk is often thought to cause an increase in mucus production, which can cause certain problems, it is important to ensure that the child is able to have an understanding of their body’s specific reactions.
Consuming the right foods is important. For example, there are foods that may help relieve asthma symptoms, such as those rich in vitamin E, vitamin C, beta-carotene, and omega-3 oils. All of these should be part of a healthy diet. However, spicy food may encourage a person to breathe more, which can, in the short term, relieve asthmatic symptoms.
Additionally, certain herbs like ginger and garlic have been suggested to have anti-inflammatory properties that might help with asthma symptoms, and food such as honey is frequently used to soothe the throat and reduce coughing. While natural remedies may offer some relief, they should never replace prescribed medication. There is a lot of anecdotal evidence that these help with asthma symptoms, but they should be used in conjunction with a properly managed medication plan.
Teach Your Child Proper Inhaler Techniques and Monitor Peak Flow
When a child is diagnosed with asthma, it can be easy just to give them the medication every day without checking on their progress. There is the commonly held belief that some children “grow out” of asthma, which refers to the potential for children to experience a reduction in symptoms as they age. However, this growing out of asthma can depend on various factors, including the environment and the individual’s asthma triggers. Asthma is a chronic condition, but that’s not to say that the child should have the same dosage of medication throughout their lives.
The benefit of teaching proper inhaler techniques can mitigate some of the problems in experiencing asthma as they get older, but also regular peak flow monitoring gives you an instant result as to whether your child’s asthma symptoms are, in fact, improving.
Encourage Breathing Techniques
Depending on the age of your child, asking them to do breathing exercises might be impossible. But there are a number of breathing techniques that come recommended for asthma, including:
Diaphragmatic breathing, which encourages greater lung capacity.
- Pursed lip breathing, which helps control breathing and empty air out of the lungs.
- Nasal breathing, which can add warmth and humidity to the air and can reduce asthma symptoms.
There are other methods as well, such as Buteyko breathing, which focuses on nasal breathing but breathing low, slow, and deep and not over-breathing, which is considered by practitioners of the Buteyko method to contribute to a worsening of asthma symptoms.
Additionally, the Papworth method is another method taught by physiotherapists that focuses on controlling and correcting dysfunctional breathing, such as hyperventilation. It also involves relaxation exercises, which are critical, especially for children who over-breathe, as over-breathing can result in speeding up the heart rate, contributing to feelings of anxiety.
Identifying and Avoiding Triggers
We should teach our children about asthma and ensure that if they are unwittingly exposing themselves to a trigger, they can then remove themselves. Exercise could be a trigger, but allergens in the air are also another trigger. We can create an allergen-free environment in the home, for example, by regular vacuuming, using hypoallergenic bedding, and air purifiers to reduce airborne irritants. When children understand asthma triggers like dust mites, mold, pollen, and strong odors, this can reduce the severity of the asthma symptoms.
Reducing asthma symptoms in children requires a holistic approach. In addition to medicine, it also encompasses environmental management, but also active involvement from the parents and the child. With a comprehensive approach that takes into account many different factors, there is no reason why you would not be able to improve your child’s asthma symptoms and enhance their quality of life.
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