Stimulants That Trigger Asthma Attacks

Identifying Indoor Allergens and Irritants

Those who suffer from asthma may not stopped to think about it, but do you realize you spend 90% of your times indoors? 

When you know that is it any wonder that indoor allergens and irritants can play a significant role in triggering asthma attacks.

At this point you know that an asthma attack is caused by a trigger, which can be any external stimulant such as perfume, food, air pollution, cold air, animals, dust, etc.

Some of the most common indoor asthma triggers include secondhand smoke, dust mites, mold, cockroaches and other pests, household pets, and combustion byproducts.

Knowing what your personal triggers are and avoiding them will help greatly to prevent asthma attacks. However, what triggers an asthma attack in some people may not even bother another asthma sufferer at all.

Every person has their own asthma triggers. If you have asthma you can minimize your symptoms by avoiding the factors that trigger your symptoms, and by working with your physician to develop an effective management and treatment plan.

To make things more confusing, sometimes a trigger will cause a mild reaction one day and then a severe one the next day. This could be the result of being exposed to multiple triggers, for example one of your known triggers could be pollen, but when combined with a few new unknown triggers - fabric softener, detergent, perfume or a food additive can hit very hard and trigger a major attack. On days when you are feeling tired and haven't had enough sleep or are under stress, you may also find that things which never seemed to bother you previously now suddenly do.

Tracing your asthma triggers can be rather complex and requires a bit of detective work to track down and eliminate or minimize these triggers at home or at work. Keeping track of your asthma attacks by writing a journal for a few days is a good way to start. First it's a good idea to note how you were feeling the day you had an attack, if you were tired or didn't sleep well, had a fight with your friend.

What did you eat? Make this detailed and include food ingredients, additives and coloring since they can be a trigger for many people. Where did you go that day? Were there weeds or flowers blooming nearby, animals, damp moldy smells around you? Did you start using a new detergent, fabric softener or household cleaner?

Make a note of any exercise you do and your body's reaction to it. On one particular day did the exercise have negative results? Why? What was the weather like? What was the room where you exercised like? If the room is where you regularly go to exercise, was there anything different about it on that day?

After only a few days of writing in your journal you will soon see a pattern emerging. You will have uncovered your asthma triggers and now you can take control and prevent an asthma attack by avoiding, reducing or eliminating them.

The better informed you are about your asthma triggers and management, the less asthma symptoms will interfere with your activities. It is important to avoid your triggers, work with your physician on a management plan and take appropriate medications as prescribed. Together, you and your allergist/immunologist can work to ensure that asthma does not interfere with your optimal quality of life.

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Author Susan Millar is a former asthma and allergy sufferer. She is a researcher and author of The Dramatic Asthma Relief Report, based on extensive research about a genuinely effective drug-free allergy and asthma treatment, helping people worldwide become asthma and allergy free. Please visit http://www.dramatic-asthma-relief.com/ for more information.

Stimulants That Trigger Asthma Attacks