Asthma is one of the major chronic diseases in the world that affects nearly 300 million people across the globe and its rate of impact increases by a whopping 50% every decade. Moreover, it affects both adults and children and is the most common chronic disease among children, according to the WHO. So, if you have been diagnosed with low or severe asthma, we have some simple home remedies that you can try to ease your condition and get a sigh of relief.
11 Home remedies you can try if you have asthma
Below, we have listed a few simple home remedies that you can try to keep your asthma away and improve your health. Read on to find out more!
1) Buteyko Breathing Exercises
Buteyko Breathing Exercises is a set of controlled breathing techniques that can help reduce the symptoms of asthma and improve your pulmonary functions. It is scientifically proven that practicing breathing exercises inspired by the Buteyko Method can help you experience improved blood circulation and more open airways.
The Buteyko Method of breathing exercises was developed by Ukrainian doctor Dr. Konstantin Buteyko who observed that healthy people have a regular breathing pattern during rest and they use their noses to take in oxygen. Unhealthy people, on the other hand, often use their mouths to breathe in and use their upper chest with a respiratory rate and volume much greater than usual. So, Dr. Buteyko developed the Buteyko Method of breathing exercises over the next four decades to help people with breathing diseases reduce their symptoms and improve their breathing patterns.
Now, as the Buteyko breathing exercises are easy to practice and maintain, you can easily practice them at home, anytime you want. It can help improve your breathing and might reduce your asthma symptoms.
2) Maintain your diet and lifestyle
While there is no specific diet menu or lifestyle to treat asthma, there are some things that you can easily practice to keep your breathing disease at bay. For starters, if you are a smoker with asthma, quit the habit RIGHT NOW! It is just not worth it and the pain of not being able to breathe is much more than the rush of dopamine with a puff or two.
Speaking of lifestyle changes, you should also not stay awake at night or mess up your sleep schedule as it may heavily impact your asthma and increase the symptoms.
Furthermore, you should try to maintain a healthy dietary plan with lots of fruits and vegetables in your meals to gain those extra vitamins and antioxidants. And if you feel uneasy after eating certain food items, avoid eating those in the future.
3) Do some yoga
If you are suffering from asthma, it is good if you practice some yoga on a daily basis. Research has shown that practicing yoga daily can be highly effective as a home remedy for asthma. Statistically speaking, people suffering from asthma who do yoga experience fewer breathing issues, reduced asthma attacks, an enhanced lung capacity, better response to medication, and improved blood flow.
So, if you want to keep your asthma at bay and lead a healthy life, start practicing yoga every morning after you wake up. If you are uncomfortable with complex yoga positions, try meditating and practicing simple asanas instead.
4) Identify your trigger points and eliminate them from your life
Suffering from asthma can be different for every individual as the chronic disease depends on various trigger points that initiate the asthma attacks. For some, it can be dust particles, while others may experience an asthma attack just by sitting beside a pet dog or a cat.
So, one of the best home remedies that you can follow for treating asthma is to identify your own trigger points. It can be, as I mentioned, anything ranging from tobacco smoke, cockroaches, and air pollution, to emotional stress, cold air, and other air-borne factors.
As soon as you identify the triggers that might cause an asthma attack for you, you should eliminate those from your life immediately. For example, if you feel that you can get an asthma attack from second-hand smoke coming from a smoker, you can stop them from smoking near you by politely asking them.
5) Try to consume more ginger
One of the easiest home remedies for asthma you can try is to up your daily ginger consumption. Ginger can prove to be a great natural remedy for asthma for its anti-inflammatory properties. In a controlled study in 2013, scientists discovered that oral ginger supplements can lead to an improvement in asthma symptoms in patients. Although it was not confirmed whether the herb leads to an overall improvement in lung functions or not.
However, if you are someone with asthma, and looking for home remedies, you can surely try upping your ginger consumption game and monitor the results. Let us know if it works for you in the comments below.
6) Increase your caffeine consumption
If you are a coffee addict, suffering from asthma, there is good news for you! Caffeine is a great natural element that can help reduce the symptoms of asthma. Caffeine contains properties that are similar to theophylline, which is a medicinal drug used to treat various issues that are caused by asthma like shortness of breath, wheezing, and chest tightness.
If you are not a coffee addict, do not worry as caffeine is present in a lot of other drinks like black or green tea, cocoa drinks, chocolate, energy drinks, and chocolate-flavored food items. So, there are a lot of options for you even if you do not like coffee.
7) Turmeric-based drinks and food items
You might not believe this but did you know that turmeric, a daily cooking spice found in most Indian and Asian households, is often touted as a great home remedy for asthma? It is mainly because turmeric has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, thanks to its primary ingredient that curcumin.
Although the claim, stating that turmeric is good for treating asthma patients, is not entirely confirmed, it is believed that everyday spice can be an effective treatment for asthma patients. According to David G. Hill, the Director of Clinical Research at Waterbury Pulmonary Association in Connecticut and a member of the American Lung Association’s National Board of Directors says that “there are some studies showing benefit, but there are some studies showing no benefit, and the studies tend to have small numbers of patients, different varieties of dosages, and different outcome measurements.”
So, if your asthma is keeping you awake at night or posing a significant barrier in your life, try consuming more turmeric-based food items and drinks like milk mixed with turmeric powder on a daily basis. Let us know if it works for you or not in the comments below.
8) Massages
Massages can be a fairly good treatment for people suffering from asthma, especially children and young adults. Even though there is not enough evidence to prove that massages indeed help treat asthma symptoms in patients, an in-depth, data-driven meta-analysis published in 2017 suggests that massage can drastically improve lung function and reduce asthma symptoms in patients. However, the researchers noted that more studies and analyses are needed to confirm that massages can indeed help asthma patients.
Nonetheless, you can try out this home remedy and ask someone to give you a nice massage whenever you feel uneasy. Let us know the results in the comments below.
9) Essential Oils
Now, coming to essential oils can be good for treating asthma in patients. Researchers have studied the effects of different essential oils like peppermint, lavender, clove, and eucalyptus, on asthma symptoms and found positive results in some cases. However, it is of utmost importance to note that strong fragrances of essential oils might trigger asthma attacks in some patients who are sensitive to strong smells.
Moreover, researchers from the National Capital Poison Center say that essential oils can be poisonous if misused. Hence, it should be kept away from children and pets.
10) Increase magnesium intake
Magnesium is an important mineral that can help relax the muscles of the respiratory tract and reduce asthma symptoms in patients. A study has shown that low levels of magnesium can lead to wheezing, more sensitive airways, and impact the performance of your lungs.
So, increasing magnesium intake via certain food items and supplements might give you positive results in treating your asthma. Some magnesium-rich food items include nuts, avocados, whole grains, tofu, bananas, dark chocolate, and leafy green vegetables.
11) Steam your face
Another simple home remedy that you can try to reduce asthma attacks and symptoms is to steam your face on a daily basis. Just boil some water in a pot, put a thick towel over your head, and inhale the steam that comes out of it by making a cocoon over your face.
Steaming your face can help clear out your nasal and respiratory tracts and improve your breathing. It can also help improve the blood flow in your body and prevent further respiratory issues.
So, these are some of the simplest home remedies for treating mild asthma in both children and adults. Do try out these if you struggle with asthma attacks from time to time and see the results. You can then let us know which of the above home remedies worked for you in the comments below.
Also read: Asthma: THESE are some symptoms and treatment for this deadly disease