HealthCare

Bronchodilators are among the fastest selling drugs in the global healthcare market. Now that won't come as a surprise considering the rate of prevalence for asthma. Today, over 300 million people worldwide suffer from this chronic respiratory disease and in the United States alone, expenses for asthma medications reached more than $60 Billion in 2007. Meanwhile, clinical studies have confirmed the risks pertinent to the extended use of long-acting bronchodilators, which include increased hospitalization and asthma-related deaths among asthma patients. Despite FDA mandate for adequate black box warnings in their packages, the risks of negative reactions prevail. If only an alternative medicine for asthma and respiratory conditions is available, then we wouldn't have to contend with these severe side effects. But then there are in fact a number of herbs and natural remedies recognized in the practice of alternative medicine for their therapeutic effects on the lungs and the bronchioles, as well as for their tonic benefits on the respiratory tract and the immune system.

Asthma is a terrible disease and, if left untreated, can lead to hospitalization and even death. If you suffer from asthma we don't have to tell you about the symptoms -- the wheezing and shortness of breath, the chest pain or chest tightness, the difficulty sleeping and the shortness of breath during exercise. See your doctor first. Buteyko breathing technique The first natural remedy you can try is called the Buteyko breathing technique. This was developed by a Russian-born researcher and consists of shallow breathing exercises designed to help you breathe easier. It is based on the premise that raising carbon dioxide blood levels through shallow breathing will help as carbon dioxide is believed to dilate the smooth muscles of your airways. Trials undertaken in Brisbane, Australia, showed people taught the Buteyko Method were able to reduce Bronchodilator usage (symptom related medications) by 90% within six weeks; along with a marked improvement in quality of life (they felt much better). Herbs While many medical practitioners doubt the ability of herbs to help with asthma, there are some alternative medicines that have been used in Asia for centuries. Among the herbs that have been used to treat asthma include ginkgo biloba, Tylophora Indica, Solanum xanthocarpum and Solanum trilobatum. Many people do believe that these herbs along with breathing exercises and the right diet can lessen both the severity and frequency of your asthma attacks. 
Folk medicine has used the bitter gourd plant for treating asthma since ancient times. To use the bitter gourd roots mix a teaspoon of the root paste with an equal amount of honey or juice of the tulsi leaves and take this every night for a month. Garlic has also proven to give some people relief from asthma. If you are in the early stages of asthma, take 10 garlic cloves and boil them in 30 ml of milk. You should take this mixture once daily. You may also find you can keep the problem under control by adding two minced garlic cloves to steaming ginger tea.

Home Remedies for asthma : The most common home remedy for asthma is honey. The way the honey is used is to hold it under your nose and inhale the air that comes in contact with it. This may make breathing easier and deeper.

Lemon and figs Figs have also been used to treat asthma. They help by draining off the phlegm. Just clean the figs thoroughly with warm water and soak them overnight. Some asthma sufferers have found relief by using lemon juice diluted in a glass of water and taken with meals. Other natural remedies Other home remedies for asthma include drumstick leaves, ginger, bishops weed, and safflower. To treat asthma with the bishops weed, mix a teaspoon of it into a glass of buttermilk and take it twice daily. To use safflower, put a half teaspoon of the powder (of the dry seeds) into a tablespoon of honey and take this once or twice a day. This acts as an expectorant and can help reduce spasms by liquefying the tenacious sputum.

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Because people with severe asthma commonly have low blood oxygen levels, a doctor may check the level of oxygen either by using a sensing monitor on a finger or ear or by taking a sample of blood from an artery . Supplemental oxygen may be given during attacks. However, in severe attacks, a doctor also needs to monitor carbon dioxide levels, and this test requires a sample of blood from an artery. A doctor may also check pulmonary function, usually with a spirometer or a peak flow meter. Usually, a chest x-ray is needed only in severe asthma attacks. People experiencing very severe asthma attacks may need to have an artificial airway passed through their mouth and throat and be placed on a mechanical ventilator.

Generally, people who have severe asthma are admitted to the hospital if their lung function does not improve after receiving a beta-adrenergic agonist and corticosteroids or if they have a seriously low blood oxygen level or a high blood carbon dioxide level. Intravenous fluids may be needed if the person is dehydrated. Antibiotics also may be needed if a doctor suspects a lung infection; however, most such infections are due to viruses’ for which no treatment exists.
 
Drugs for Preventing or Treating Asthma Attacks
Drugs allow most people with asthma lo lead relatively normal lives. Most of the drugs used to treat an asthma attack can be used to prevent attacks.
Short-acting Beta-adrenergic Agonists: Short-acting beta-adrenergic agonists are usually the best drugs for relieving asthma attacks. They can prevent certain attacks, such as exercise-induced asthma. These drugs are also referred to as bronchodilators because they stimulate beta-adrenergic receptors to widen and dilate  the airways. Bronchodilators that act on all beta-adrenergic receptors throughout the body, such as epinephrine, cause side effects such as rapid heartbeat, restlessness, headache, and muscle tremors. Bronchodilators such as albuterol act mainly on beta2-adrenergic receptors, which are found primarily on cells in the lungs. They have little effect on other organs and thus cause fewer side effects. Most beta-receptor agonists, especially the inhaled ones, act within minutes, but the effects last only 3 to 7 hours. New, longer-acting bronchodilators are available, but because they do not begin to act as quickly, they are used for prevention rather than for attacks of asthma.

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