Asthma and exercise

Asthma is a chronic lung disease that inflames and narrows the airways.

What Causes Asthma?

a combination of factors (family genes and certain environmental exposures) interact to cause asthma to develop, These factors include:

• An inherited tendency to develop allergies.
• Parents who have asthma
• Certain respiratory infections during childhood
• Contact with some airborne allergens or exposure to some viral infections in infancy or in early childhood when the immune system is developing

Common asthma symptoms include:

• Coughing. Coughing from asthma is often worse at night or early in the morning, making it hard to sleep.
• Wheezing. Wheezing is a whistling or squeaky sound that occurs when you breathe.
• Chest tightness. This may feel like something is squeezing or sitting on your chest.
• Shortness of breath. Some people who have asthma say they can't catch their breath or they feel out of breath. You may feel like you can't get air out of your lungs.

Asthma and exercise

Most people with asthma have asthma symptoms if they exercise in dry or cold air. When at rest, you breathe through your nose and the air is warmed, moistened and filtered as it enters your body. When you exercise, you need more oxygen and so you breathe faster through your mouth. Your airways react to this cold, dry air and the muscles around them tighten.

Preparing for exercise

You can reduce the risk or prevent exercise-induced asthma by preparing for physical activity in a few simple ways:

• Make sure your day-to-day asthma is well managed.
• Use your asthma reliever medication around five to ten minutes before you warm up. Speak to your doctor for advice.
• Always warm up with light exercise and stretching for 10 to 15 minutes before you play sport or exercise.
• Always cool down.