Know Your Child's Asthma TriggersAvoiding asthma triggers whenever possible is the key to controlling asthma and keeping symptoms at bay. We worked hard to figure out what our own son's asthma triggers are so we can protect him from irritants at home. Once I figured out that his allergies, respiratory infections, and asthma were all somehow connected, I was a woman on a mission. I had to find out what his triggers were and stop allowing him to be exposed to them. 
Obviously, this picture shows quite clearly how we decided that our son has no pet allergies at all and dogs are definitely not one of his asthma triggers. This old dog had been part of our lives for nearly a decade before our son was born, so he was exposed to pet dander, etc. from birth (and before!). The dog was one of my first suspects in the hunt for triggers. But our son has never shown any asthma or allergy symptoms when exposed to the dog - good thing, because it was love at first sight for those two. When the dog did finally pass away, we sadly scrubbed, cleaned, air filtered, etc. just in case... ...but never saw any difference in our son's health before or after the dog. The first step in protecting him from asthma triggers we had not yet identified was to improve our indoor air quality and remove potential irritants as quickly as possible. You can do some of these things, too... ...just check out my page about asthma home remedies . The second step was looking for asthma triggers and getting rid of them. Easier said than done. Here are some common asthma triggers to avoid:
Asthma triggers are different for every child, so it's important to help them figure out what their own triggers are. Respiratory infections were a big issue for our son - and were the most obvious trigger. When he was very young, as I mentioned earlier, he seemed to catch viruses very easily and hold onto them forever. I didn't realize how significant this was until our second child was born. For both kids, I kept a chart in their baby books listing doctor appts, sick visits, and general illnesses in the first year. Our second child was sick at least half as often as our first. Obviously, this was not a scientific study - far from. I have no background in medicine or science, but it was hard to miss the fact that our first-born asthma-prone child was sick more often and for longer periods of time than our daughter. No kidding. If he got sick, I knew he'd be down and out for at least 3 - 5 days, and run down or tired for a couple of weeks. The first time our infant daughter got sick, I thought - here we go! Get ready for days on end stuck at home until she gets better. But she surprised me. The time from her first sniffle to the last was only about 5 days. Our son (who had caught the virus first) was more noticeably sick. And it lasted a full 10 days. Figuring out his triggers meant keeping a close eye on him and noticing what he was doing when asthma symptoms began to appear. 
Remember the dog and the baby? Nope, not a trigger.
Dogs must be a trigger for Steve Allen because here's how he describes his own asthma:"Asthma doesn’t seem to bother me any more unless I’m around cigars or dogs. The thing that would bother me most would be a dog smoking a cigar". This quote is funny, but the fact is that he avoids his triggers to keep asthma at bay. Did you catch it? Asthma doesn't cause him problems......unless he's around cigars or dogs. My point is this:
Less exposure to triggers = Fewer asthma symptoms! 
Fresh flowers? Definitely an asthma trigger for our kid - and an allergy trigger too! My husband surprised me with a beautiful bunch of fresh flowers for Valentine's Day one year. Our little guy was thrilled to 'help' out by putting the flowers in a couple of vases after I trimmed the stems. I didn't notice his runny nose at first. Later in the day, we sat having lunch near the flowers and I noticed his breathing was a bit heavy. I also noticed that the flowers were dropping yellow 'stuff' onto the table. I still didn't put two and two together, but decided to keep a close eye on him to see if he'd need a breathing treatment. When we left the kitchen, his breathing seemed fine. It wasn't until the next meal around the table that he brought (what seems so obvious to me now!) his own asthma trigger to my attention. How? He very clearly stated in his 2 1/2 year old way: "Mom. Could you move those flowers out of here? They're makin' it hard for me to breathe." Needless to say, pollen is one of my son's asthma triggers. I did take a picture of the flowers. After all, they were beautiful. But now I usually receive potted plants as gifts - that we keep outside. If you want more information about asthma triggers and how to avoid them, let me know here.
Return to Top of Asthma Triggers
|
