Sports induced asthma is a medical disorder that is characterized by shortness of breath induced by sustained workouts during sports. It has some features of other types of asthma and and responds to some asthma medicines. These are not caused due to inflammation reaction as other asthma types. Most people chronic asthma experience symptoms of asthma during sports. However, many people without chronic asthma develops symptoms while playing sports.
Symptoms of Sports Induced Asthma:
While breathing normally, air that we inhale is first warmed and mistened by nasal passages. This is because people breathe through mouth when they workout during sports. In sports induced asthma, muscle bands around nasal passages are extremely sensitive to the changes in humidity and temperature and reacts by contracting, that narrows airway. This leads to symptoms of sports induced asthma, that include:
- Wheezing
- Shortness of breath
- Coughing
- Chest tightness
- Fatigue
- Decrease in athletic performance
Signs and symptoms of sports induced asthma begin within 5 – 20 minutes after the start of workouts during sports. These symptoms vary from person to person.
Controlling Sports Induced Asthma:
Sports induced asthma can be controlled when the patient and health care provider work together to detect, control and eliminate triggers. Most effective maintenance and preventive medications must be taken and should also have an emergency plan for asthma.
Often, sports induced asthma is cured with the medications used for treating standard asthma. Often, doctors prescribe short acting bronchodilators for inhaling for treating sports induced asthma to relax and for opening airways. Other medications include:
- Long acting bronchodilators
- Leukotriene modifiers
- Mast cell stabilizers
Tips to Prevent Sports Induced Asthma:
- Use pre-exercise inhaled drugs.
- Restrict sports when suffering from viral infections.
- Perform workouts to warm up and maintain an appropriate cool down period.
- Workout at appropriate level.
- Avoid workouts during sports when the pollen count is high and also during high air pollution.
