Asthma is not a disease but lifestyle disorder, aggravated by pollution and helped by genes. Yes, it can run in families. It can be avoided in families if they are living together under a same roof or notes can be shared among family members living in different corners of the world.

An Identical twin with similar genetic makeup may suffer from Asthma in India, 2nd twin in the USA may not suffer from any symptoms.

1. Avoid steroids and keep them for emergencies only. Steroids are bad for growing up kids, seniors and otherwise healthy adults. Steroids carry lots of side effects like weak bones, calcium depletion, mood changes with sudden highs and sudden lows mimicking and a bipolar disorder. Our body produces enough of steroids by adrenal glands as ordered by the pituitary gland in brain giving orders to adrenals on top of kidneys to release more steroids during:

  • Fight
  • Freight
  • Flight
  • Fear

Our emotions are related to release of steroids. During a fight, we need more energy but less sense leading to release of more steroids anyway. We have more chores to do- freight or weight when our emotions are heavy. So steroids are made more by adrenals as ordered from higher centres in the brain. We run away from situations (flight) instead of facing them head-on. Steroids are released more in escapists. Fear nothing including Asthma attacks, accept everything as destined and body will release fewer steroids.

2. Take medication on time, medicines to open up passages to the lungs, medicines to soothe the irritable lungs and medicines to get some sleep (no tranquillizers or other addictive medicines, simple antiallergics work wonders doing 2 jobs at a time. Allergy is a trigger for asthma. Remember the age-old Phenergan or Chlorpheniramine maleate. Types of safer drugs which can be had by pregnant women, seniors and growing up kids in calculated doses)

3. Pollution is a trigger. Avoid and grow more trees to be surrounded with natural greenery giving oxygen.

4. Reduce stress as stress is another important trigger. Accept situations and accept disease.

5. Oxygen is the therapy along with sleep of minimum 8 hours. Keep an Oxygen cylinder/handy oxygen concentrator/mini cylinder of oxygen at home and breathe fresh every day despite no symptoms of acute asthma. Oxygen therapy helps other organs like heart and brain to function better.

Asthma can be controlled or exaggerated to demand attention.

Think about the options of being a patient for life as a show-off or like a person with weak eyesight who has to wear spectacles for life to read /write/see/look better.