7 Easy Tips to Prevent Allergic Asthma Attacks

Allergies are a common health issue in the US, with symptoms ranging from sneezing, watery eyes to nasal congestion. It a result of the body immune system’s response to substances that are not actually dangerous. Simply put, allergies happen when the body produces antibodies that mistakenly identify harmless substances such as dust and pollen as invaders. In some cases, this allergic response affects your airways and lungs, leading to asthma. Though visiting an allergy and asthma clinic can get you the right treatment plan, taking some precautionary measures can keep allergens at bay. 

Here are seven useful tips in this direction. 

1. Clear your bedroom from stuffed toys and carpet

Carpet and stuffed toys capture a lot of dust. In fact, carpets installed over concrete floors prevent the evaporation of moisture and lead to mold. Therefore, people who are allergic to dust and pollen should either remove carpets from the floors or clean them up at least twice a week using a high-quality vacuum cleaner. 

2. Don’t allow pets on bed or furniture

Many people are fond of pets and treat them as their family members. Pet dander, however, is one of the biggest triggers that causes asthma attacks. If you are asthmatic, keep your pets off the bed and other furniture. 

3. Avoid getting exposed to secondhand smoke

Inhaling smoke, produced from any source, is a big ‘no’ if you have asthma. This is why you should avoid getting exposed to passive or secondhand smoke. Shun the public places and smoking zones at the workplace to control exposure to smoke. Furthermore, ensure you have smoke-free indoor spaces at your home. 

4. De-stress

Stress worsens asthma symptoms and may even aggravate the issue. People suffering from asthma should, therefore, avoid stress, whether it is related to personal or professional life. Meditating daily can help reduce stress and improve your mental/physical health. 

5. Limit your movement during the ragweed season 

The air we breathe undeniably plays a substantial role in our health and well-being. As dust and pollen trigger allergies and also cause asthma attacks, limit your movement during the ragweed season or use a mask if you suffer from allergies. In addition, avoid staying too much in warm and humid weather condition, as it may worsen the allergic reaction.  

6. Wash your hair at night

Washing your hair before going to bed is an effective way to rinse out the pollens, especially if you regularly use a gel or mousse. When you wash your hair, the trapped pollens get wiped and prevent allergic reaction while sleeping. 

7. Avoid using houseplants

Houseplants cheer you up, but they also trap a lot of dirt. When the plants get wet and warm, they often produce mold. Mold spores can get into lungs through your nose and trigger asthma. Though, if you can’t think of giving up your favorite plants, better avoid overwatering them. 

The Bottom Line

These simple strategies can help prevent allergy triggers and ensures asthma care. Allergies, however, can be mild to extreme that varies from case to case. It is, therefore, advisable to visit an allergy and asthma clinic in your area that can treat and also provide tips to prevent asthma attacks caused by allergens. 

Asthma and Allergy Tests: A User-centric Guide

Millions of people in the US suffer from different kinds of asthma and allergies. An essential first step to effective treatment is to find out the causes of your asthma and allergy. Asthma and allergy centers aid you to obtain better diagnosis and treatment for these health problems. They are considered better than private clinics and hospitals due to their wide availability and specialized treatments.

Read on to learn more about asthma and allergy tests that these centers offer.

Asthma Tests

Spirometry

It is the first and the most commonly conducted lung or, pulmonary function test (PFT). This test helps to measure how much and how rapidly you can move air out of your lungs. This lung function measurement test specifically takes into account the amount (volume) and the speed (flow) of air that can be inhaled or exhaled. It requires you to breathe into a mouthpiece connected to a recording device or spirometer. The information that the spirometer collects is printed out on a chart called a spirogram. Spirometry is an essential tool used to help assess asthma and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).

Xolair

Xolair is a treatment meant only for patients with high Immunoglobulin E (IgE) levels and suffering from moderate to severe asthma. Xolair for hypodermic use is an injection, similar to allergy shots; binding the lgE and inactivating it. It is typically used to treat children aged 12 and older as well as adults suffering from:

Moderate to Severe Continuous Asthma

Under this condition, patients fail to get relief from asthma symptoms even after inhaling corticosteroids. Besides, the patients have to go through a skin or blood test to check if they have short-term allergies to year-round allergens.

Chronic Idiopathic Urticaria (CIU)

H1 antihistamine treatment cannot control this type of Urticaria. Chronic Urticaria is hardly the consequence of an allergy. Rather, most of chronic hives’ cases have an unknown (idiopathic) cause.

Allergy Tests

Rush Immunotherapy

Rush or accelerated immunotherapy is done quite fast with the ultimate aim to increase your endurance to an allergen. Different routines for the allergy shots try to achieve a maintenance dose that is quicker than standard immunotherapy. A rush immunotherapy schedule may consist of shots given after every few hours, instead of after every few days or weeks. Moreover, the maintenance dose is reached in one to eight days. Asthma and allergy center is the right place to conduct rush immunotherapy, as emergency care is readily available there.

Sublingual Immunotherapy

Sublingual Immunotherapy (SLIT) makes use of allergy drops placed under the tongue to treat the cause of your allergy. Specific allergens that you are allergic to are put under your tongue and these allergens interact with special immune cells. Repeated doses of these drops turn your immune system less prone to allergies. SLIT treats your immune abnormality, i.e. its hyper-responsiveness to allergens such as pollen, dust, insect sting, food, animal dander, mold, medications, and latex. These allergic reactions may occur in the nose, sinuses, lungs, skin or GI tract.

Conclusion

Now that you have learned about the different kinds of asthma and allergy treatments available, you should visit asthma and allergy centers if you suffer from any of these diseases. Physicians available at these widespread centers care better for their patients.