One of the major problems caused by changing weather is trapping of pollutants within our atmosphere. As a result, many people suffer from breathing problems — asthma is a common problem. Bronchial asthma affects your lungs and can be life-threatening if one doesn't get timely treatment.
Types of asthma:
Intermittent: It comes and goes, so you can feel normal in between asthma flares.
Persistent: You have symptoms all the time. It can be mild, moderate or severe.
Signs and symptoms
People with asthma usually have symptoms that resemble many respiratory infections:
Chest tightness, pain or pressure
Coughing (especially at night)
Shortness of breath
Wheezing
With asthma, you may not have all these symptoms with every flare. You can have different symptoms and signs at different times with chronic asthma. Also, symptoms can change between asthma attacks.
Causes
Anyone can develop asthma at any age. Some of the root causes are: Air pollution, dust mites, intense workouts, mould, pests, pets hair (if you are allergic as breathing in the dander can irritate your airways), tobacco smoke, strong chemicals or smells, certain occupational exposures (like cleaning products, dust from flour or wood or other chemicals).
What happens during an attack
Bronchospasm: The muscles around the airways constrict (tighten). When they tighten, it narrows airways.
Inflammation: The lining of the airways swells.
Mucus production: During the attack, your body creates more mucus. This thick mucus clogs airways.
Mudra for asthma
There are several holistic techniques to control an attack and even reduce the number of episodes. A simple and effective one is the practice of mudra. To practice, fold middle fingers of both hands and join their nails together, keeping thumbs and other fingers straight and apart.
Duration: 5 to ten minutes, five times a day.
Daily practice of this mudra can potentially cure asthma. It’s a variation of the shoonya mudra that increases blood circulation to affected parts of the body. It resolves throat problems, improves oxygen flow to lungs and strengthens them. In acute cases of asthma, practice apaan vayu mudra or bronchitis mudra for five minutes followed by this mudra. All of the above have been covered in the previous articles.
(There are over 350 health problems that can be prevented/cured with mudras. To know more visit www.artofselfhealing.in)
