Welcome seasonal changes without fear of Allergic Asthma!

Rains along with respite from scorching heat brings seasonal illnesses that deter people from enjoying the cool and pleasant atmosphere. Along with cold and flu, monsoon is a season of deadly diseases like Dengue, Chikungunya, Malaria, Typhoid, Cholera, Hepatitis A, etc.

Monsoon is also the season when asthma patients get affected the most due to the dampness and humidity in the atmosphere. The increase in moisture levels and lack of sunlight cause certain bacteria, virus and dust mites that aggravate the asthma-like symptoms. The allergic asthma can be mild or severe, but it requires medical attention on time, or else it can be life threatening.

What is Asthma?

An Asthma is one of the most distressing events in anyone’s life when one faces severe breathing issues. It is a chronic respiratory condition wherein a person’s airways become inflamed, narrow and produces extra mucus. Mucus fills the airways and poses difficulty in breathing, further leading to chest pain, cough and wheezing.

When one of your loved once suffers from this and the condition aggravates with every seasonal changes, one must visit the best pulmonology hospital in India and get the expert treatment at the right time. An allergic asthma is not curable but completely manageable with preventive measures.

Shalby Hospitals offers comprehensive asthma treatment in Ahmedabad. We have a team of best pulmonologists of Ahmedabad who provide best care to asthmatic patients.

What triggers an allergic asthma?

Not just monsoon, sometimes frequent seasonal changes can also lead to allergic asthma attacks. These includes- pollen and micro particles in the air during spring time, dust and pollution during summer, and mould growth during monsoon and winter. Any of these could lead to the terrible chest tightness, wheezing, irritable throat, a quickened heart rate or rapid breathing with shortness of breath.

1. Maintain a dairy:

Ideally, one should maintain a dairy to observe when and what triggered an asthmatic attack. This will help you and your doctor identify a pattern whether physical issues like temperature variations affect you, or whether emotional and psychological issues trigger attacks. You should also keep the track of your food habits on a regular basis. This will help you identify which food or drink you might be allergic to so as to avoid them in future.

2. Keep track on seasonal fruits and vegetables:

Many times, we are not aware that certain seasonal fruits and vegetables can trigger an allergic reaction and lead to severe asthmatic attack. Foods which contain menthol, oxalic acid, or gluten might stimulate allergic reaction. Cow’s milk, peanuts, cheese, dried fruits, mushrooms, various kinds of instant food like soups, and fries, shellfish and crabs are some food items known to cause an asthma attack.

3. Avoid drugs which triggers an asthma:

During medical issues like viral fever or orthopaedic condition, doctor prescribe medication to treat the issue. At such times, you need to be careful with the content of the medications. You need to check if you’re allergic to any specific ingredient and bring it to your doctor’s notice.

4. Keep yourself away from smoke:

If you are an allergic asthmatic patient, you should install filters at home or work place to keep out particulate pollutants, dust, and other allergens. Stop smoking, and don’t allow anyone to smoke around you. Most importantly, the mosquito menace increases manifold during change of season and during the monsoons. However, don’t use mosquito coils to ward off the pests. Chemical mosquito repellents and sprays are equally dangerous for asthma.

Dr. Nikita Rajguru, Pulmonologist, Shalby Hospital, SG, Ahmedabad, said, “The best treatment is to avoid allergens if you are already aware of things that can aggravate symptoms of asthma with the change of season. In case you are unaware, you can consult an expert pulmonologist for allergy testing. Also, other precautions are to use a mask while going outside and to use an inhaler in proper dosage and technique regularly as advised by the doctor along with medicines. For all allergic patients, flu vaccination is also advisable.”

Along with above safety measures, you need to consult expert for the same. Shalby Hospital has dedicated Asthma Clinic under the guidance of the lung specialist in Ahmedabad. Once you have identified the allergens, consult the doctor about taking allergy shots. In the flu season, vaccination might be advisable as a preventive measure. Above all, you must seek professional counselling.