If your child suffers from asthma, you will no doubt understand how worrying this condition can be. While there are treatments for asthma, there’s no cure– but there are a few things that you can do to make your child’s asthma a little better.
Please note that the advice given below is not to be used in place of the care and advice given by health professionals. If you are concerned about your child’s asthma, please speak to your doctor.
Encourage Your Child To Stay Active
You could be forgiven for thinking that exercise could potentially make your child’s asthma worse. However, your child may be able to exercise a little more than you think.
Studies have shown that some activities can help to reduce the symptoms of asthma, thereby allowing your child to become just as active as their siblings and friends.
Regular exercise is thought to help asthma as it gets the lungs working, while gradually increasing your child’s stamina, and reducing incidences of breathlessness.
You should aim to gradually build up the amount of exercise your child does, so their body gets used to it.
Health experts recommend that children exercise for at least one hour every day. Exercise can involve playing soccer or other sports, participating in after-school activities, or simply playing out in the yard. The more exercise your child does, the stronger their lungs will be.
Have Inhalers With You Wherever You Go
Having the right inhalers with you wherever you go can help to prevent asthma attacks. Ensure you have the preventative inhaler with you when you leave the house with your child. Always have the reliever inhaler with you too, just in case.
If you have ever left the house without your child’s inhalers, you probably understand how stressful it can be. Parents often worry that they cannot help their child in the event of an asthma attack, and it’s this worry that can make matters worse.
Take your child’s inhalers with you wherever you go, leaving the spare inhalers at home, and maybe in the car too. As your child grows, encourage him or her to carry their inhalers in a bag or pocket, so they know they can reach it and use it if they need to.
Keep Inhalers By Your Child’s Bed
One of the best ways that you can encourage your child to deal with an asthma attack, is to keep their inhalers by their bed. Should your child wake up in the night they should be able to see where their inhaler is, and use it if they need to.
Not only does this encourage your child to deal with an asthma attack, but it also means that they can use their inhaler, and get back to sleep in no time.
Asthma can be dealt with if the right inhalers are used when needed, however, if you do have any concerns about your child’s asthma, or they continue to cough at night, please speak to your doctor.
Encourage your child to exercise more, have the right inhalers with you wherever you go, and keep a few by their bed.
Being proactive about asthma will allow your child to deal with an attack should it occur while encouraging them to live their life knowing help is at hand should they need it.