A century ago, asthma was rare. Now it is anything but that! Asthma is one of the few chronic diseases on the rise: its incidence has soared by 73% percent since 1982. Nearly 17 million people have asthma, including 5 million children. Asthma cuts across all class and race lines and can last a lifetime. The cost to our country is staggering. Almost $2 billion a year is spent to treat pediatric asthma. Parents with asthmatic children lose $1 billion a year by staying home to care for their children when struggling with respiratory health challenges. There is a growing list of theories as to why asthma has been increasing…
-
-
A Healthy Respiratory System
When a healthy person inhales, he/she enlists the diaphragm, a powerful muscle that sits underneath the lungs, to draw in air. The air is filtered and humidified though the nose or mouth then passes down the windpipe into the bronchi tubes, which then lead into bronchioles or smaller tubes that travel into the lung tissues. The bronchioles, in turn deliver the air to millions of tiny sacs called alveoli, which reside deep in the lungs. The alveoli passively expand and contract as oxygen is delivered to the blood stream and carbon dioxide is sent back to the lungs to be exhaled. In a healthy person, it is a perfectly regulated…
-
What is Asthma?
Asthma is the body’s reactions to many kinds of irritants. During a bronchial asthma attack, the bronchii do not allow sufficient air to reach the lungs and the individual begins to labor for breathe. Often the person will feel tightness in the chest and may gasp for air. The face may turn pale or gray or become blue around the lips. It’s common for those experiencing an acute flare-up to cough or spit up a considerable amount of mucus. For many people, asthma attacks become more chronic over many years. The most common asthma is bronchial asthma, which is caused by a narrowing of the breathing passages that carry air…
-
NW Forest Fires & Residual Smoke: It’s Health Impact on Urban Communities
My intentions for researching & writing about asthma & it’s multiple triggers with environmental fire smoke are numerous. As a health practitioner that saw the intense strain on many Seattlites coping with the most basic of human needs, being able to breathe, it registered in my mind as huge red flag. I saw dozens of people wearing scarves over their faces in the downtown area every day, exponentially so many more numbers of families running to their pulmonary specialists or hospitals to get back up support with bronchial dilator medications. Chronic asthma & acute asthma flare ups spiked to record highs spurned on by the lingering forest fire smoke. Late…
-
The Corona Virus And How To Strengthen Your Immune System
What are the Lifestyle Factors that deplete you immune system, making you more vulnerable to catching the Corona Virus? Here are a few ways you can strengthen your immune system: Excess Dependency on Caffeine, Alcohol & Packaged Foods These all provide poor nutrition for the immune system. It makes your body & mind work on an empty gas tank…… and you can’t go very far on that. These are the foods that are devoid of vitamin/ mineral nutrient enriched food, so essential to a healthy and resilient immune system. In the cold winter months when colds are more easily propagating their community of offspring in your body, is when fresh…
-
Lifestyle Factors That Make You More Vulnerable To Catching Colds
Part 1: What are the lifestyle factors that deplete your immune system, making you more vulnerable to catching colds? If you are in touch with your body, you may already have some inkling of what tipped the scales in your body, that made whatever cold/ flu viruses in the environments you hang out in, sneak in under your body’s radar defenses. Can you guess what some of those lifestyle factor are that have thrown you out of balance? There are so many factors that can tip your body’s immune system scale. Inadequate or restless sleep. Overwork to the point of exhaustion/ not enough quality downtime/ chronic longstanding overwork. Excess dependency…
-
Staying Healthy Through the Cold and Flu Season
The cold wet dark days of winter encourage opportunistic respiratory viruses to step up their action. 1.7 billion colds and flus wallop the United States every year, setting off a storm of sneezes, sniffles, sore throats & sinus congestion. In the last few years, we are seeing more virulent cold and flu bugs that disseminate in our work and community places, that the yearly flu vaccine does not always safeguard against. More virulent bacteria and virus strains are the root cause of lingering pneumonia, asthma, bronchitis & persistent coughs, COPD, reoccurring sinus infections and allergic reactions to dust, mold and pollens. The cold and flu bugs are catalyzed by over…
-
Common Foods that Trigger Migraines
Studies have shown that foods containing MSG or hydrolyzed proteins can increase glutamate blood levels anywhere from twenty to fiftyfold. It can enter the brain, especially in areas known to trigger migraines. The most important trigger to remove from your diet is excitotoxin food additives found in various processed foods. All glutamate & aspartate are excitotoxins in high concentrations & to be wary of when checking food labels. Here are others trigger foods: Tomato paste * Cheeses( especially parmesan ), Dried or condensed milk * isolated soy protein * whey protein Peanut butter * Beans * Mushrooms, Natural flavorings & stock broths are all high in glutamate. Milk * Eggs …
-
What Triggers Migraines?
Most common cause is food sensitivities from various foods. In many cases, the attack may occur hours or even days after exposure. Refer to specific foods below. Hormonal changes during women’s mensies or when taking oral contraception or after menopause are common. A drop in estrogen levels can precipitate migraine attacks and normal stable levels can prevent them. Most women have migraines during their menses, which is the time of greatest hormone fluctuations. Stress related ~ overwork, inadequate sleep, increased worries & anxieties & overexposure to computer radiation. Emotional stresser such as major life transitions: deaths. Allergies to people, animals or other environmental factors. Some migraines are triggered by hypoglycemia…
-
Allergies Migraine Headaches: Natural Ways to Stop & Prevent Them
Most of us have, on occasion suffered from a splitting headache that interfered with enjoying our day or doing our work. 75% of all headaches are tension related and are triggered by muscular tension in the skull, eyes neck & shoulders. While most headaches are easily controlled by a scalp & neck massage or taking some aspirin, some headaches go beyond being merely a painful nuisance. This is the case with some vascular, migraine headaches. How to Distinguish a Migraine from other Headaches Migraines are always one sided in their effect in the area of the scalp, face & eye area. This is one distinct quality that separates them from…
