I’m still enjoying the Florida sunshine as I write because my trip back to Long Island was delayed. One of my large family, (of cats) had to have surgery, and he can’t travel until at least Wednesday. I’ll just sit here and suffer in the 70 degree weather.
I have a friend who used to coach girls basketball for many years, and many times he saw the kids suffer from what’s called “exercise induced” or “sports” asthma. It happens when airways are narrowed acutely by vigorous exercise, and breathing becomes difficult.
99% of the time this was alleviated by the use of an inhaler, and 30 minutes of inactivity. Then, the girl was good to go again. These girls were exceptions to the general rule, in that most kids with this problem opt not to participate in athletics, or anything strenuous. Inactivity is not a good habit to get into at any age, but this is what happens, and many misinformed parents push their kids in this direction, not wanting them to get hurt, or embarrassed.
On my friend’s team they had a remarkable system. The other girls would help out with the inhaler while the assistent coach supervised. And the affected girl’s breathing would get back to normal as she calmed down.
Then, as if nothing had happened, the girl would leap right back into the game.
A study I’ve just seen recently shows that a low salt diet combined with pharmaceutical grade fish oil supplementaion would reduce the incidence of bronchoconstriction, one of the medical terms used for sports induced asthma.
The study, which was done at the University of Indiana in 2006, showed post-exercise lung function of adults with mild to moderate persistant asthma, improved by 64%. The use of emergency inhalers decreased by roughly 31%.
There was a key finding in the study that grabbed my attention. While on the diet and supplementing with fish oil, airway pro-inflammatory cells and markers were reduced in the participants. These are responsible for airway inflammation and airway obstruction.
So where are kids these days getting all their salt, which is a key factor?
Snack food: potato chips, Doritos, Cheetos, hot dogs, frozen pizza, and most microwavable food. They’re all loaded with salt.
If you spend much time around kinds, you know they’re putting this stuff away by the kilo.
My advice…get rid of it. Start buying less of it, and start introducing the kids to good food. Everybody benefits.
And enteric coated pharmaceutical grade fish oil isn’t just for yourself, it’s for the whole family. It’s never too late to start everyone on the path to healthy eating and living.
Good food and good exercise, plus enteric coated pharmaceutical grade fish oil, mean your chances of contracting this type of asthma may be very slim indeed.
