One of the most common chronic illnesses affecting children and infants around the world is childhood asthma. Breathing is supposed to be easy, but in children with asthma, they may find it hard to breathe normally. As a parent, it can be difficult to watch your child wheeze, cough, and struggle to breathe. Included below are some tips on how to make sure your child’s asthma remain well controlled.
What is childhood asthma?
We all know how our lungs are made up of little tubes leading to bigger tubes making them look like sponges. When a child has asthma, the tubes get irritated and narrowed. As a result, it’s hard for air to get in and out. That is why a child may struggle to breathe. The lungs and airways are often irritated when they are exposed to certain triggers including pollens, cold air, chemicals, strong scents/odors, common viruses, and even stress.
Children suffering from childhood asthma may become uncomfortable with some of their daily activities such as playing, sports, school, and sleep. In some cases, unmanaged asthma can cause asthma attacks that might be dangerous. Childhood asthma has a similar presentation to that of adult asthma, but because of their young age, childhood asthma can pose different and unique challenges especially for parents. As a result, this condition is one of the common causes for emergency hospital visits and being absent from school.
Signs and symptoms of childhood asthma
As a parent, it is important to be familiar with the signs and symptoms of childhood asthma so you will be able to better recognize uncontrolled asthma. Signs and symptoms of childhood asthma include:
- A cough that doesn’t go away easily
- Cough that happens during play, at night or while laughing or crying
- Stopping to catch breath during certain activities
- Trouble sleeping because of cough
- Rapid breathing
- Chest tightness
- Wheezing when breathing
- Shortness of breath
You should look out for these signs and symptoms and remember to talk to your doctor if these symptoms persist.
3 things you might not know about childhood asthma.
- Diagnosing asthma in children can be difficult. Many children will go symptom-free for long periods of time before having an asthma attack. The symptoms of asthma can be confused with those of other respiratory diseases. And depending on your child’s age, it may be difficult for him or her to explain his or her symptoms. Children with asthma may show the same symptoms as adults with asthma, coughing, wheezing and shortness of breath. In some children, chronic cough may be the only symptom.
- Asthma doesn’t mean you need to limit your child’s activities. In fact, a major goal of asthma treatment is to ensure that exercise is not avoided. That’s why we provide the very best treatment regimen so that your child can exercise as much as desired.
- A child with eczema can have an increased risk of developing childhood asthma otherwise known as “the atopic march.” The typical progression is eczema followed by food allergies, airborne allergies, and then possibly asthma.
If you think your child has childhood asthma, talk to the doctors at Bernstein Allergy Group to help you better manage your child’s asthma so that they can lead a happy and healthy life.
