Prevention of Asthma

You can reduce asthma symptoms by avoiding known triggers and substances that irritate the airways.

• Cover bedding with "allergy-proof" casings to reduce exposure to dust mites. Pillows and the warm bedroom air that surrounds them are perfect breeding grounds for those undesirable invisible companions making themselves at home in your bed. It has been estimated that a large proportion of the weight of your pillow may be made up of bugs, dead skin, dust mites and their feces.
• Remove carpets from bedrooms and vacuum regularly.
• Use only unscented detergents and cleaning materials in the home.
• Keep humidity levels low and fix leaks to reduce the growth of organisms such as mold.
• Keep the house clean and keep food in containers and out of bedrooms -- this helps reduce the possibility of cockroaches, which can trigger asthma attacks in some people.
• If a person is allergic to an animal that cannot be removed from the home, the animal should be kept out of the bedroom. Place filtering material over the heating outlets to trap animal dander. Asthma is strongly associated with allergies, and exposure to allergens can worsen asthma symptoms.
• liminate tobacco smoke from the home. This is the single most important thing a family can do to help a child with asthma. Smoking outside the house is not enough. Family members and visitors who smoke outside carry smoke residue inside on their clothes and hair -- this can trigger asthma symptoms. Children are especially susceptible to developing asthma or experience a worsening in symptoms if they are exposed to secondhand smoke. Children breathing secondhand smoke are more likely to suffer from bronchitis and pneumonia, ear infections, coughing and wheezing, and more frequent.

Persons with asthma should also avoid air pollution, industrial dusts, and other irritating fumes as much as possible.