Do Asthma and Allergies Go Hand In Hand?

You will often find that asthma

and allergies are closely related to

one another. Asthma is a disease

that affects the windpipe

branches, which work to carry air

into and out of the lungs. There

are a lot of varying types of

asthma.

Allergic asthma is a form of asthma that will normally be

triggered by an allergy, such as mold or pollen. About half of the

20 million Americans who are already dealing with asthma have

this form of asthma.

Normally air is taken into your body through your nose and

windpipe and down through the bronchial tubes. There are small

air sacs at the bottom of the tubes that help deliver fresh air into

the blood. The air sacs also work to collect the stale air that is

exhaled from your body. A normal breathing pattern consists of

the muscles around the airways relaxing and helping to move the

air freely. During an asthma attack, there are three changes that

prohibit the air from flowing throughout the airways freely:

• The muscle bands surrounding the airways will tighten, which

creates a narrowing known as a bronchospasm.

• The airway lining will become swollen and inflamed.

• The cells lining the airways will create more mucus, which tends

to be thicker than usual.

Once the airways are narrowed it creates difficulty with the

airflow into and out of the lungs. People who have asthma will

often feel as if they are not able to get enough air, which only

makes breathing that much more difficult because of the

changes.

Common Asthma Symptoms

Asthma symptoms will normally strike when your airways are

going through changes as outlined above. A lot of people will be

able to go a long time between any attacks, but there are others

who have an attack on a daily basis. Some of the more common

asthma symptoms include:

• Coughing repeatedly at night

• Difficulty catching your breath

• Tightness or pressure in the chest

• Wheezing

Every person who suffers from asthma will have varying

symptoms. You may have different symptoms at different points

in time, or you may not have some of them at all. It could be that

your asthma symptoms will differ from one attack to the next.

Symptoms could be mild at one episode and severe at another.

Mild attacks are a lot more common than their counterparts.

Airways will normally open up within a couple minutes, but

sometimes it can take a few hours. Severe episodes are not as

common, but they do last a lot longer and will typically require

immediate medical attention. It is imperative that you are able to

recognize and understand how to treat even the mildest of

symptoms to help prevent any future episodes and keep your

asthma under control.

If you are someone who suffers from asthma and allergy

symptoms, a reaction to one of the allergy inducing substances

will only aggravate the asthma symptoms.

For More Information, Call Us Today at (505) 629-0612 or Visit

Our Website at http://ear-nose-throat-santa-fe-nm.com.