Asthma / Asthma - The Condition	Navigate This Article What is it?/Characteristics/Cause Symptoms/Medical Dx/Medical Tx CRA Dx/Nutritional Tx Diet/Chiropractic Tx/Exercise & Prevention
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The asthma epidemic among children may have been triggered by youngsters not eating their greens. Increasing affluence has led to many consuming a diet that has more processed food than fresh vegetables.

Now researchers claim that a lack of key vitamins and minerals in the diet may be responsible for the rising levels of asthma in Britain and other Western countries.

In Britain a million children have the condition which is more common among youngsters here than almost anywhere else in the world, affecting up to one in three teenagers.

The scientists studied communities in Saudi Arabia where there are striking differences in lifestyle and the rate of allergies across the country.

More than 100 children aged around 12 with asthma symptoms, who lived in the city of Jeddah and several villages, were compared with 200 non-asthmatic children.

Diet was significantly linked to wheeziness in the children with asthma. Those children with most symptoms had the lowest intakes of vegetables, milk and fibre, vitamin E, calcium, magnesium, sodium and potassium.

Children whose diets were relatively low in vegetables and vitamin E intake were around three times more likely to wheeze.

The researchers, from Aberdeen University and King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah, said the Saudi diet was traditionally based on Arabic foods that bore little resemblance to the Western diet.

'However, with increasing prosperity and commercial exposure, there has been an influx over some three decades of Western-type frozen and prepared foods in supermarkets and restaurants,' they added.

In recent years experts have claimed that the explosion in asthma has happened because children's lives are 'too clean'. They say previous generations were exposed to more dirt - and the microorganisms in it - which helped their immune systems develop resistance to allergies and related conditions.

But the researchers said there was no link between numbers of infections children suffered and levels of wheeziness.

Dr Martyn Partridge, chief medical adviser to the National Asthma Campaign, said: 'This study is consistent with others that suggest that taking fresh fruit and a balanced diet protects against asthma and some other lung diseases. 'It is yet another pointer towards lifestyle as the cause of the increase in prevalence of asthma.'

Dr Neil Barnes, a specialist at the London Chest Hospital, said there was stronger evidence for infections rather than diet being responsible for rising asthma levels. 'But it may turn out that different factors are responsible in different communities,' he added.

A study published in the November / December 2000 issue of Today's Chiropractic gives some insight into the use of chiropractic in combating asthma. Forty seven patients were observed for a two year period. They had been medically diagnosed with persistent asthma ranging from mild persistent in 11 cases, moderate persistent in 28 cases, to severe persistent in 8 cases. The care rendered consisted of specific chiropractic adjustments. The range of visits was from 14 to 44, with the average being 26 during the study period.

All 47 of the study patients showed "a marked improvement ranging from 87 to 100 percent." Their symptoms improved as well as a decrease in their usage of acute asthma attack medication. Even more impressive was the fact that all of the patients in the study reported maintaining their improvement after a two-year follow up.

Childhood Asthma and Chiropractic

Chiropractors suggest that there is a strong link between people who suffer from childhood asthma and nerve interference from subluxation. Subluxations are when bones in the spine pressure or irritate nerves causing abnormal nerve function.

An article published in the Journal of Vertebral Subluxation Research (Vol. 1 No. 4) showed positive effects of chiropractic care on 81 children with asthma. It concluded that "Based upon information currently available, chiropractic care represents a safe non-pharmacological health care approach, that may be associated with a decrease in asthma-related impairment, reduced respiratory effort, and a decrease incidence of asthma attacks. The correction of vertebral subluxation could reduce or eliminate the need for medication, and potentially ease the severity of the asthmatic condition."

This was verified in another study. In a study conducted in 1996 by the Michigan Chiropractic Council (MCC), a panel of doctors performed an out-come assessment study to test the qualitative and quantitative effectiveness of chiropractic care on children with asthma. There was an overwhelming interest in the study. More than 500 parents called the MCC seeking to get their child involved in the chiropractic study.

The study, which took place during May and June of 1996, examined the chiropractic effectiveness in correcting the cause of asthma in patients from birth to age 17. The average age of the participant was 10 years. After 30 days of chiropractic health care, patients averaged only one attack, whereas prior to the study they were experiencing more than four attacks. Medications were decreased by nearly 70 percent. Patient satisfaction was rated 8.5 on a scale of 10. More than 70 chiropractors from 62 cities in Michigan participated in the study involving more than 80 children suffering from asthma.

The International Chiropractic Pediatric Association cites several studies when coming to the following conclusion discussing the benefits of chiropractic for children with asthma:

Go here for additional information regarding chiropractic treatment.

There are several facts to be realized about asthma and exercise.

• Asthma is in fact a common but serious condition.
• If asthma is well controlled with appropriate treatment, exercise does not need to be avoided or limited.
• Having asthma does not mean you cannot exercise. Many well-known athletes have managed their asthma to successfully compete in their chosen sports.

Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm (EIB)

Definition: a temporary narrowing of the airways, or bronchospasm, which is induced by strenuous exercise.

Most children with asthma have acute asthma episodes from time to time. These episodes vary greatly in how quickly they start, how severe they are, and how long they last. Episodes brought on by allergens or by exercise develop quickly, whereas episodes caused by viral infections (colds) usually begin slowly over a few days. Severe asthma episodes can be life threatening.

Children's airways are small to begin with, and therefore any changes in the airways can cause significant symptoms in a child. These changes (airway inflammation and bronchoconstriction) cause any combination of four major signs and symptoms:

• Cough
• Wheeze
• Shortness of breath
• Tightness in the chest

Each child's asthma is different, meaning that different factors may be responsible for provoking the asthma.

Exercise may cause airways to tighten.

Mechanism of Exercise-Induced Bronchospasm

EIB is a very common symptom for persons with asthma. Eighty to ninety percent of asthmatics have difficulty breathing with vigorous exercise.

There are a number of people who have not been diagnosed with asthma and who develop breathing problems with vigorous exercise. For example, 50% of people with hay fever or allergic rhinitis (allergic runny nose) and 10% of normal athletes have been found to develop EIB. As these individuals have hyperresponsive airways, a diagnosis of asthma is probable. For this reason it is preferable to refer to breathing difficulties that develop with vigorous exercise as exercise-induced bronchospasm rather than exercise-induced asthma.

Why does exercise create breathing difficulty? There is no simple answer to explain why EIB develops. There has been much debate and controversy over this the past few years. People with asthma begin with hypersensitive airways (or twitchy airways). When exposed to certain stimuli, these airways react by contracting or tightening. When we exercise vigorously, we tend to breathe in and out of our mouth, and our breathing becomes deeper and quicker. The EIB is most likely due to:

1. cooling of the airways

2. drying of the airways or loss of water from the airways

3. involvement of the nervous system; there is promising evidence that chiropractic care can normalize messages sent to the lungs so that bronchspasm can be controled. see the section above on chiropractic

Breathing warm, humidified air (i.e. during swimming) can completely or partially prevent EIB. Breathing cold, dry air seems to make EIB symptoms worse for many people. People who suffer from asthma have certain cells called mast cells in their large bronchi and lungs. The cooling and drying of the airways stimulate the mast cells to produce a chemical substance called a mediator, which causes spasms of the muscles surrounding the airways.

Symptoms of EIB

Obvious Symptoms

With some children, the signs of EIB are very obvious:

• Wheezing
• Shortness of breath on exertion
• Chest tightness

For example, these children are generally identified as having asthma in your class; they take medications regularly and they generally have symptoms with other stimuli in addition to exercise.

Subtle Symptoms

There is another group of children who exhibit more subtle signs:

• Cough (a child may consistently cough after jogging or playing basketball or soccer)
• Chest congestion
• Chest discomfort or pain
• Shortness of breath (children may complain that their chest is too small)
• Susceptibility to cold air (a child consistently coughs after coming in from playing outside)
• Feels out of shape or winded
• Tires easily
• Displays lack of energy (especially in children)
• Problems occur while running but not while swimming
• The child is unable to keep up with their friends when running and playing
• The child is unable to run five minutes without stopping
• Dizziness
• Stomach-ache
• Frequent colds
• Frequent throat clearing sounds

EIB is often overlooked by parents, physicians, teachers, and even the children themselves; if not properly diagnosed, appropriate management is not possible. The child continues to have symptoms and soon learns to limit his or her exercise so that these symptoms or uncomfortable sensations are avoided.

Ways to Reduce EIB

1. Avoid Exercise if Symptoms are Present Prior to Exercise

• if a student has obvious wheeze or breathing difficulty prior to exercise, it should be avoided

• exercise will be hazardous

2. Supplementation

The following supplements are indicated:

Children 0-5 years: follow the following supplementation per day for 12 weeks to 1 year:

• 1-10 Allerplex® to normalize breathing
• 1-3 Antronex® to control coughing
• 1 Cal-Amo® to eliminate possible parasites
• 1-3 Multizyme™ to digest mucus
• 1-6 Vasculin® to balance heart rhythm and electrical pulse
• 1-3 Zymex® IIto eliminate possible parasites

Children 6-12 years: follow the following supplementation per day for 12 weeks to 1 year:

• 6-20 Allerplex®
• 5-20 Antronex®
• 6-12 Cardio-Plus® or Vasculin®
• 5-10 Multizyme™
• 6 Zymex® II

Adults: follow the following supplementation per day for 12 weeks to 1 year:

• 6 Allerplex®
• 2 Cal-Amo®
• 12 Vasculin®
• 2 Cataplex® D
• 3 {dermamin}
• 2 B6-Naicinamide

3. Adequate Warm-Up

a period of submaximal exercise before exertion is encouraged i.e. walking and other low level activities, and flexibility exercises should be done; this can be followed by running rapidly on the spot for 30 seconds, followed by a 60 second rest; repeat this 2 or 3 times

• warm-up period may need to be longer than usual

• subsequent exercise should then be less symptom provoking than usual

4. Modified Exercise

There is no such thing as the perfect exercise for people with EIB. The key is to select a sport or exercise the child enjoys and feels good about doing. Very light or nonaerobic exercise (such as walking or weight training) rarely results in EIB. Exercise intensity should begin at low levels and gradually increase as the child's fitness level improves. Running tends to produce symptoms more easily than do bicycling or walking. Indoor swimming very rarely causes EIB because it is performed in a humid and often warm environment; it is a sport often chosen by people with asthma.

Other sports relatively well tolerated include:

• football
• downhill skiing
• tennis
• baseball
• volleyball
• wrestling
• short distance track and field events
• golfing
• gymnastics

5. Avoid Environmental Factors

• inhaled allergens

• dust (outside or inside)
• pollens (grasses, weeds, trees)
• animals
• air pollutants such as sulfur dioxide and ozone

are known to aggravate EIB. People with inhaled allergies may find exercise more difficult in this type of environment; there may be a need to increase anti-inflammatory medication during the seasons.

• cold, dry air

- wearing a scarf or cold air mask warms and humidifies the air before it reaches the airways. Minimize exercising in cold, dry air. EIB has been shown to be eliminated if exercise is done in warm, moist environments.

6. Adequate Cool-Down

Avoid stopping exercise abruptly. To avoid sudden changes in the airway temperature, a warm-down period of 10 minutes is suggested. This warm-down period, however, may need to be longer.

7. Avoidance of Certain Foods

Avoiding certain foods several hours prior to strenuous exercise may be important for some people. The following foods may increase EIB, and in some cases cause anaphylaxis:

• shrimp
• celery
• peanuts
• egg whites
• almonds
• bananas

Signs include:

• flushing
• hives
• rash
• swelling of the larynx
• bronchospasms
• faintness

7. Chiropractic Care

Consult a licensed practitioner and go through a trial of chiropractic care. Locate a licensed practitioner here.

Exercise-induced anaphylaxis

This is a rare but frightening and potentially fatal physical allergy. Food ingestion before vigorous activity has been associated with exercise-induced anaphylaxis; exercise-induced anaphylaxis occurs more commonly in hot, humid weather conditions and may also be related to severity of exertion. The teacher should be aware of emergency treatment for this.

Other Suggestions:

Students should exercise for as long as the rest of the class, or until coughing, wheezing or chest tightness develops, which may range from a few minutes to the full lesson. Exercise tolerance will vary greatly among students with asthma, and even from day to day in the same student. Should a student become wheezy or have difficulty breathing during exercise and develop an asthma episode, implement emergency treatment.

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