Training for Asthmatics By alex m. loewen

What is asthma? Lung disease Cause: wheezing, chest tightness, shortness of breath, and coughing 25 million affected in United States Children make up 7 million What is asthma? Many people confuse being out of shape with having asthma which is a chronic, or long-term, lung disease that inflames and narrows the airways. Asthma causes recurring periods of wheezing, chest tightness, shortness of breath, and coughing. The coughing often occurs at night or early in the morning. Asthma affects people of all ages, but it most often starts during childhood. In the United States, more than 25 million people are known to have asthma. About 7 million of the people are children.

How do the airways work? Carry air into and out of lungs Asthmatics have inflamed airways Muscles around airways tighten To understand asthma, it helps to know how the airways work. The airways are tubes that carry air into and out of your lungs. People who have asthma have inflamed airways. The inflammation makes the airways swollen and very sensitive. The airways tend to react strongly to certain inhaled substances. When the airways react, the muscles around them tighten. This narrows the airways, causing less air to flow into the lungs. The swelling also can worsen, making the airways even narrower. Cells in the airways might make more mucus than usual. Mucus is a sticky, think liquid that can further narrow the airways. This chain reaction can result in asthma symptoms. Symptoms can happen each time the airways are inflamed.

Is there a cure? Cure unknown Always have asthma Managing the disease can lead to normal lives Asthma has no cure. Even when you feel fine, you still have the disease and it can flare up at any time. However, with today’s knowledge and treatments, most people who have asthma are able to manage the disease. They have few, if any, symptoms. They can live normal, active lives and sleep through the night and exercise without interruption from asthma.

Exercise-Induced Asthma (EIA) Acute lung airway narrowing happening during and/or after exercise Changes in airways temperature Alterations in mucosal osmolarity Congestion Bronchial blood flow/Bronchial heat exchange influences asthma The term “exercise-induced asthma,” or EIA, is used to describe acute lung airway narrowing occurring during and/or after physical activity. The underlying factors governing the initiation of EIA are not clearly understood. Changes in airway temperature (cooling and rewarming), alterations in mucosal osmolarity (airway drying), and congestion of the bronchial arteries, resulting in bronchial mucosal vascular engorgement, have all been suggested as causes. At present, it seems that the bronchial blood flow or bronchial heat exchange relationship influences the development of airway narrowing following exercise-related overbreathing. Exercise-induced asthma typically occurs after ventilation with large quantities of air, especially cold, dry air that contains environmental pollutants and/or allergens. It is commonly agreed that most children adolescents, and adults with asthma can safely participate in all sports with the exception of SCUBA diving, provided they are able to control exercise-induced bronchospasms via medication or careful monitoring of activity levels.

Symptoms Shortness of breath Tight feeling in the chest Wheezing Fatigue Coughing The symptoms of asthma attacks are similar to poor fitness; shortness of breath, a tight feeling in the chest, wheezing, fatigue, or coughing. This can make it difficult to tell the difference between being out of shape and actually having asthma. The symptoms of exercise-induced asthma unfortunately may deter people from exercise.

Medication Bronchodilators Anti-inflammatory compounds Antihistamines Calcium channel blockers Heparin Leukotriene receptor inhibitors Neurokinin receptor inhibitors Lipoxygenase inhibitors Medications to modify or prevent the exercise-induced asthma response include bronchodilators, anti-inflammatory compounds such as inhaled cromolyn, nedocromil, and corticosteroids, and a variety of medications including antihistamines, calcium channel blockers, and inhaled heparin. More recently, immune system modifiers are available, including leukotriene or neurokinin receptor inhibitors and lipoxygenase inhibitors. The most common of these medication is one that the asthma patient inhales right before physical activity, I’m sure we’ve all seen one of our friends use an inhaler.

1989 Study Done by Loughborough University of Technology 9 asthmatic patients, 6 non-asthmatic participants Ran 3 times per weeks 5 weeks long Self-selected running speeds Nine mild to moderate asthmatic adults and six non-asthmatics underwent endurance running training three times per week for five weeks, at self selected running speeds on a motorized treadmill. After training, the asthmatic group had a significantly higher maximum oxygen uptake, significantly lower blood lactate and heart rate in submaximal running, and a significantly reduced time to complete a two mile treadmill run, partly attributed to the ability to exercise at a higher VO2 max after training. These training induced changes of the asthmatic group were generally of a greater magnitude than those shown by the non-asthmatic group. Although seven of the nine asthmatics did show a reduction in the post-exercise fall in the amount of air they could forcefully exhale in one second after the five week training period, this was not statistically significant for the asthmatic group as a whole. The results of this study therefore suggest that endurance running training can improve the aerobic fitness of asthmatic adults, and may reduce the severity of exercise-induced asthma.

Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCizklESrAw

References "What Is Asthma?" - NHLBI, NIH. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2014. "Exercise-Induced Asthma." American College of Sports Medicine 2.6086 (2011): 536. American College of Sports Medicine. Web. 16 Nov. 2014. Freeman, W, M G Nute, and C Williams. "The Effect Of Endurance Running Training On Asthmatic Adults." British Journal Of Sports Medicine 23.2 (1989): 115-122. SPORTDiscus with Full Text. Web. 18 Nov. 2014. "What Is Asthma?" National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. 4 Aug. 2014. Web. 16 Nov. 2014.