What really is exercise-induced asthma?
Asthma comes in a couple of different forms, but this article looks at the exercise-induced kind. Like the name suggests, it is a narrowing of the breathing tubes that happens during strenuous exercise. Typically, people will notice this after going running or when their kids start into sports. It can be a scary experience for a parent and even more so for the person that experiences them. It typically starts with shortness of breath and then moves into coughing, pain in the chest/throat, and/or wheezing sounds. Its severity is different person to person, and even from attack to attack.
What causes the attacks?
The list of potential triggers is huge. There are so many, but keeping track of what might be causing YOUR attacks could be a huge benefit. Most commonly, triggers can be tied to seasonal allergies or any other reasons that could cause increased inflammation of the airways. This includes the food you eat as well. Some people have reactions to certain foods that are very noticeable. For example, the person with nut allergies that has to carry around an epi-pen for safety. Other reactions can be smaller and go by mostly unnoticed, or could be taking the form of inflammation in other places of the body. The American diet has no shortage of inflammatory foods and sugars, along with polyunsaturated fatty acids. These are big issues for people that are dealing with an inflammation issue like asthma.
Okay I get it, where does fish-oil come into this?
Fish-oil has a lot of things in it that helps to reduce inflammation. It is part of a healthy and less inflammatory diet, which as we discussed before, could make a huge difference in a lot of people with asthma. One study looked at the symptoms and blood work of different patients that were blind to if they were getting fish-oil, or a fake pill. The group of patients that took the fish-oil supplements had a better overall lung function following strenuous exercise. Not only that, they had less of the asthma attack markers in their bloodstream following exercise as well. These people also reported having to use their rescue inhalers less than the fake pill group. The amount that was supplemented was 5.2 grams and they took it for three weeks. Results became evident after the first 10-ish days.
