Asthma Patients To Be Careful When Venturing Outdoors Activities: ENT Specialist

Health expert on Tuesday advises asthma patients in the country to be careful when venturing outdoors, taking precautionary measures to reduce the risk of an attack as weather dipping down.

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 20th Nov, 2018 ) :Health expert on Tuesday advises asthma patients in the country to be careful when venturing outdoors, taking precautionary measures to reduce the risk of an attack as weather dipping down.

Talking to private news channel ENT Specialist Dr Anwar Ghafoor said that winters are always terrifying for chronic asthma patients.

"Lungs and air passages of asthma patients are already sensitive. In winter, when they come in contact with cold dry air and various kinds of viruses, they trigger asthma seizures. In winters, hospitals do see a jump in admissions due to asthma," specialist said.

And extra vigilance can go a long way, he says, advising asthmatics to avoid cold air when possible. "Wear warm clothing too, and if needed, cover the face with a scarf over the mouth and nose." He explained, "Asthma can be a complicated issue to tackle and the process of managing asthma is continuous".

Early mornings and evenings are full of dust motes and mites that trigger asthma seizures. It is better that children with a history of asthma do not venture out during early hours, he added.

Specialist further said , "there is a definite lack of awareness about the ailment: simple precautions are enough for its management".

He further said rapid changes in the weather, especially the rapid onset of cold weather, are directly responsible for decreased lung function in asthmatics.

With viral infections tending to be more common during winter, he says asthmatics in particular should take the influenza vaccine. "I also tell patients who like to exercise to try exercise indoors when it's cold outside." Asthma mostly affects around 20 to 40 percent of school-aged children, he mentioned.

Cold and flu season is starting too, Dr said, adding, when kids go back to school, they often bring home viruses, which are some of the most common asthma triggers.

Dr said , the combination of exercise and breathing cold air can trigger asthma flare-ups, making outdoor exercise difficult. In some winter weather systems such as inversions, increased levels of ozone further aggravate asthma symptoms.

He added that the foods to be avoid in asthma include processed meats, sugary drinks, trans fats found in fried foods, white bread, white pasta, soybean oil and vegetable oil processed snack foods, such as chips and crackers, desserts such as cookies, candy and ice cream.

He advised , the parents should dress their children proper warm clothes and one of the basic causes of various diseases is that people do not know how to safeguard the children. If proper care was not taken, complications such as ear and sinus infections, pneumonia and high fever might occur, he added.