Asthma and Acid Reflux: Making the connection
Since the scientific link between asthma and acid reflux is still uncertain, you should always see your doctor and take the appropriate precautions that your provider prescribes for you. This includes taking any medications that your doctor deems important to not only control your symptoms but hopefully to prevent them for occurring so you can improve your quality of life.
There are other steps that you can take to make sure to keep your acid reflux in check too. No matter what your dietary intake is crucial.
—- Definition Dietary Intake —-
Dietary intake should not be misconstrued as going on a special diet. If you are overweight, of course, you need to manage more appropriately the calories you consume. And always strive to increase your physical activity levels. Doing so will make the foods you consume be better metabolized or burned up. With the added calories you burn and use, the less likely your weight will stay high.
—- End Dietary Intake —–
The Easy Way to Balance Your Reflux
Getting your dietary intake in balance with what your body needs can be done by avoiding certain foods that aggravate or trigger your acid reflux symptoms. First on the list is eating friend foods. This should be avoided at all costs. Why? Because most of these foods are cooked in very heavy oils. Your acid reflux help should begin by looking at what you eat. You can be on the best medications in the world. You could get your treatment from world renown doctors at the Cleveland Clinic or Johns Hopkins, or National Jewish Hospital. But if you keep eating foods that exacerbate your reflux symptoms, it will all be for nothing.
The second foods you’ll have to look out for how your body responds to them is that of fresh fruits. Especially those that are prone to trigger more acidic levels in your stomach.. We are talking about, citrus fruits, oranges, tangerines, grapefruit etc. Your GERD may respond to them in such a way that produces more heartburn than you can muster. You see, it is difficult to paint a picture of just how many foods are in this category. Your body is like an experiment. You will have to try to stay aware of which foods trigger you to have more symptoms versus the others.
Do you want to know an easy way to do this? Just keep a food diary. The high tech method of doing this is on your mobile phone. You do have a mobile phone don’t you? it seems that everyone has one of those nifty gadgets. They do all sorts of things. You can use the feature on your phone for a calendar entry or a memo to write in what you ate and how your body responded. Since your phone is with you everyday, you should be able to start this with ease.
Another suggestion if your phone has emailing or texting capabilities, is to send yourself a message. Phones now have the ability send emails of all the texts that are on the phone. All you have to do is write in a message to yourself whenever you eat one of those foods you want to know if it will cause your GERD or asthma to flare up.
What to Do About Asthma Symptoms
Now if you your asthma symptoms are persistent meaning you have them on a weekly basis or even daily, you really need to make your doctor aware of this. The biggest fear of asthmatics is that of DEATH. This is a very real fear. Did you know that in the United States everyday ten (10) people die of asthma? That is right, in the U.S. people are dieing from asthma everyday. It is amazing but true according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in Atlanta Georgia.
Are you suffering from asthma symptoms and may not know it? Maybe you have an asthma cough that you think is acid reflux cough. Asthma is a disease of inflammation of the lungs and bronchoconstriction of your breathing smooth muscle. Many patients believe that their asthma was in control until some trigger caused them to become one of the ten that die from it everyday like the precision of a Swiss Clock.
If you do have asthma, make sure you have an asthma action plan, rescue medication on hand or more specifically always with you. Lets be honest here. You only have one life to live. You have one chance to get this right. Most people cannot hold their breath for any more than 20 to 40 seconds tops. By then you would quickly go unconscious. Take your asthma however “mild” you think it is as the final step you may be give to live this life right.
