Don’t let asthma knock the wind out of you. Asthma is a lung disorder characterized by sudden fits of wheezing, coughing, or shortness of breath. According to research or other evidence, the following self-care steps may be helpful:

Clean it up
+To avoid triggering asthma attacks, control household and workplace irritants such as dust, mold, smoke, chemicals, and animal dander, and dietary triggers like certain food additives
+Keep a healthy body weight
+Shed extra pounds to improve breathing and decrease the need for medications
+Check out certain antioxidants
30 mg a day of lycopene or 64 mg a day of natural beta-carotene can help prevent exercise-related asthma attacks
+Try proven herbal remedies
+Supplements containing boswellia extract (900 mg a day), ivy leaf extract (50 drops a day), or tylophora leaf (200 to 400 mg a day) may improve breathing symptoms; children should be given one-half of these amounts or less, depending on body weight
+Watch the salt
+Avoid aggravating symptoms by limiting use of table salt and salty fast foods, and by reading labels to find low sodium groceries
+See an allergist
+Find a specialist to help you build tolerance to allergens