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Plan for Active in Asthma

For Adults

Many people with asthma have some symptoms, especially coughing or wheezing, when they are physically active. This does not need to happen. An important treatment goal is for you to take part in the physical activity of your choice without having symptoms. Your regular asthma medicine should help you do this. Some people with asthma keep symptoms from starting by taking inhaled asthma medicines (b2-agonist or cromolyn) right before they start their activity. Talk to your doctor about this. Exercise is important for your health. Asthma should not keep you from being active.

Remember, over 67 athletes in the 1984 Olympics had asthma. 41 won medals!

Here are some ideas to help you make a plan to be physically active:

  • List the things you do now to stay active including household tasks.
  • List the things you would like to try.
  • Check off things you will do to increase your activity level.

To Be Active :

  • Choose one of the activities I'd like to try to see if I can do it without symptoms.
  • Check my peak flow number before, during, and after the activity - did it go down?
  • Take a break if I feel symptoms coming on - and follow my asthma control plan.
  • Talk to my doctor about taking medicine before starting an activity in order to prevent asthma episodes.
  • Talk to relatives, friends, and coworkers about my asthma. Ask them to help me stay active.

For Children

Even with asthma, you can play and take part in many activities - including sports - like other kids.

Many kids with asthma cough or wheeze when they exercise, run, or play hard. This does not have to happen. Your asthma medicine will help you be active without coughing or wheezing. Some kids keep asthma symptoms from starting if they take a certain asthma medicine right before they start their activity. Talk to your doctor about this.

It also helps you feel good while you are active if you do stretching exercises ("warm up" and "cool down") before and after your activity.

Here is a plan to help you be active :

  • List the things you do now to stay active.
  • List the things you would like to try.
  • Check off things you will do to be more active.

To Be Active :

  • Talk to my parent(s) about an activity I would like to do.
  • Try the activity to see if I can do it without wheezing.
  • Show my parent(s) how much I can do without wheezing.
  • Talk to my parents and my doctor about taking medicine before I begin to exercise. This will keep asthma attacks or episodes from starting.
  • Take a break from the activity if I feel I may start wheezing. Follow my asthma control plan.
  • Talk to teachers and coaches about my asthma. Ask them to help me stay active.

Clues for deciding to go to school or work

An asthmatic can probably go to school or work if he/she has any of these symptoms:

  • Stuffy nose, but no wheezing.
  • A little wheezing that goes away after taking medicine.
  • Able to do usual daily activities.
  • No extra effort needed to breathe.
  • Peak flow number in the Green Zone

Clues for deciding to stay home from school or work

Patients should probably stay home if they have any of these symptoms :

  • Infection, sore throat, or swollen, painful neck glands.
  • Fever over 1000F orally or 1010F rectally; face hot and flushed.
  • Wheezing or coughing that still bothers them 1 hour after taking reliever medicine.
  • Weakness or tiredness that makes it hard to take part in usual daily activities.
  • Breathing with difficulty or breathing very fast.
  • Peak flow below 65% to 70% of personal best number and no response to treatment.
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  • Asthma Control Plan

    Name of Patient ........................................ Prepared by Dr. .........................................

    This plan will help a patient control his asthma and know what to do if he has an asthma episode. Keeping a patient’s asthma under control will help to :

    • Be active without having asthma symptoms. This includes being active in exercise and sports.
    • Sleep through the night without having asthma symptoms.
    • Prevent asthma episodes (attacks).
    • Have the best possible peak flow number - lungs that work well.
  • Warning Signs of Asthma Episodes

    Asthma episodes rarely occur without warning. Most people with asthma have warning signs (physical changes) that occur hours before symptoms appear. Warning signs are not the same for everyone. Same patient may have different signs at different times. By knowing their warning signs and acting on them, patients may be able to avoid a serious episode of asthma.

    • Think back on your last asthma episode. Did you have any of the signs below?
    • Check your warning. Show them to your doctor and family.
  • Misconception about Asthma

    There are some common concerns about Asthma prevailing in the society. In majority of cases, these are misconceptions or baseless fears. For optimum control of asthma, these points should be dealt with proper care. Otherwise the management plan may go in vain. It the physicians responsibility to eradicate such worries, if present, from the patient’s mind. Some common concerns and suggested clinicians responses are listed below. Model answers to some frequently asked questions (FAQs) are also given. These will help the physician to deal with such situations more confidently.

  • Use of Peak Flow Meter

    A peak flow meter is a device that measures how well air moves out of a patient's lungs. During an asthma episode, the airways of the lungs begin to narrow slowly. The peak flow meter can be used to find out if there is narrowing in the airways, hours - even days - before the patient has any symptoms of asthma. By taking the medicine early (before symptoms), your patient may be able to stop the episode quickly and avoid a serious episode of asthma. So its role in preventing severe asthma attack is very important.

    The peak flow meter can also be used to help you:

  • Definition of Asthma

    Why do we define asthma?

    We define asthma to identify the disease correctly and to differentiate it from other diseases. To fulfill this goal, definition of asthma has been changing over last 40 years. The clinician, physiologist, immunologist, pathologist or epidemiologist - all have different perspective of asthma.

    In the year 1997, the following working definition has been formulated by Expert Panel-2 of National Asthma Education and Prevention Program, USA.

    Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disorder of the airways:

  • Home Management of Asthma

    Why management at home ?

    Since asthma is a chronic disease, it can be and should be managed at home up to a certain level. If home management plan is applied intelligently and skillfully, most asthmatics can lead symptom free normal life, avoid hospitalization thereby cutting down the financial expenditure significantly. All patients of asthma, except those with acute exacerbation, should be treated at home.

    What are the components of home management plan ?

  • Medicines for Asthma

    What are the medicines used to treat asthma?

    There are basically three kinds of medicines:

    Relievers (Bronchodilators) are medicines that relax smooth muscles that have tightened around the airways. They relieve asthma symptoms. Short acting b2-agonists, short acting aminophylline, and ipratropium are bronchodilators or relievers.