Fact Checked
Overview Of Asthma
- Asthma is fairly common in kids. Though it is a severe medical disorder, asthma can be well-managed, allowing your child to live a complete and dynamic life.
Asthma Symptoms In Kids
Children with asthma generally have the following symptoms:
- Wheezing (a shrieking sound in the chest when exhaling);
- Coughing;
- Trouble breathing; and
- A feeling of tension in the chest.
What Triggers Asthma
Asthma symptoms in kids can be ‘triggered’ (intensified or precipitated) by an extensive range of causes, including:
- Virus-related breathing infections such as colds;
- Contact to allergens (including pollen, pets and dust mites);
- By exercising;
- Contact to dry or cold air;
- Smoke from cigarettes; and
- Certain medications.
Also, an allergy to a certain food can cause asthma. However, it is vital that you do not remove essential foods from your child’s diet except if your child has been assessed and diagnosed by a professional doctor as having an allergy. If you remove foods unreasonably and without direction, you risk causing a nutritive deficiency in your child.
Diagnosis Of Asthma
- Your GP will evaluate your child and take a detailed account of your child’s symptoms, as well as incidences of wheeziness and coughing.
- Wheeziness that is insistent or regular is most likely to be asthma. Among younger kids, if symptoms only take place when the child has flu, a diagnosis of asthma is less expected.
Treating Asthma In Kids’
The basic aim to treat asthma is to manage the asthma symptoms so that your kid can lead a complete life, and to reduce the amount of asthma attacks. This is attained by:
- Knowing what activates your child’s asthma;
- Protecting your child against those triggers;
- Helping your child to take the asthma medications that have been recommended by your GP; and
- Frequently revising the treatment and managing your child’s asthma with your GP.
Related Video On Asthma
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C-RvTupseuY