Asthma represents a chronic inflammation occurring in the bronchial airways which provoke constriction and swelling of the airways. As a result asthma sufferers experience difficulty breathing. The narrowing of the bronchial airways is normally either totally or partially reversible by the help of some treatments.
Bronchial airways which are inflamed chronically can become extremely sensitive to some allergens and irritants which are specific and nonspecific triggers respectively. The tubes might become twitchy and be in an increased sensitivity state. It is named bronchial hyperreactivity (abbreviated with BHR). In fact there is a range of various bronchial hyperreactivity in people. Though, it is obvious that asthma sufferers and people with allergy (with no apparent asthma) usually have a higher level of bronchial hyperreactivity compared to nonasthmatic as well as to nonallergic people. Actually in sensitive people, bronchial airways are likely to constrict and swell during the exposure to such triggers as tobacco smoke, exercises and allergens. Among asthma sufferers, some can suffer from mild BHR and have no signs, and other people might have serious BHR as well as chronic symptoms.
It is worth saying that asthma affects individuals in different ways. Each person is unique in the level of reactivity to certain environmental triggers. And this naturally relates to the form and dosage of medicine prescribed, and the treatment is likely to differ from one person to another one.
Some history facts
Doctors in ancient Greece actually used the term asthma for describing gasping as well as breathlessness. It was supposed that asthma derived from some internal imbalances in the body, which presumably may be restored using a healthy diet, animal and plant remedies, and also by changing the lifestyle.
Allergy jargon
the word asthma derives from such Greek word as panos which means panting.
Chinese healers realized that xiao-chiran, or in English wheezy breathing, was some kind of a symptom indicating imbalance in life force they named qi. And they restored the qi with the help of herbs, massage, diet, exercises and acupuncture.
It is interesting that the Hindu philosophers considered the breaths and soul connected as parts of the body, mind and also spirit connection. Yoga controls breathing to improve meditation. Indian doctors taught those breathing techniques and used them in order to treat asthma symptoms.