Aloe Vera & Asthma

How Aloe Vera may help with symptoms of Asthma

Asthma currently affects about one in four people across all age groups. And it seems to be steadily increasing in both prevalence and severity. A number of people link the rise in asthma in our kids to the increase in synthetic chemicals both in our environment and in our foods…

The symptoms of asthma include shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, wheezing, and coughing. Simply put, asthma is an allergic reaction - it’s the body’s way of defending itself. But to anyone who has ever suffered a full-blown asthma attack, they know only too well how frightening it can be. It feels like you can’t breathe. Some people say it feels like they’re being suffocated.

Asthma can be triggered by a wide range of allergens - things like pollen, tree sap, grasses or house dust mites - as well as via emotional stress. Other medications can also trigger an asthma attack - aspirin is a good example. Some people have a ‘warning’ period; they can feel an attack is coming on, and can take their precription medicine before the symptoms get too bad.

There are two general types of asthma medications which a doctor might prescribe to give long-term control of asthma, as well as quick relief for the symptoms of asthma during an asthma attack.

Anti-inflammatory drugs are the most common type of drugs for most asthma sufferers, because they can prevent asthma attacks on an ongoing basis. Corticosteroids, or steroids for short, are probably the most widely prescribed anti-inflammatory drugs. These types of asthma medications reduce swelling and mucus production in the airways. Consequently, the airways become less sensitive and therefore less likely to react to asthma triggers.

Bronchodilators are the second main type of asthma medication. They reduce the symptoms of asthma by relaxing the bands of muscle around the airways (the bronchus). This allows the airways to open wider, letting more air in and out of the lungs, so breathing becomes easier. Bronchodilators also help clear mucus from the lungs as a secondary effect.

No question that the disease is frightening and can force people to change how they live and even where they live in an atttempt to avoid asthma attacks. It’s recommended to look out for and avoid as many of the asthma triggers as you possibly can. Those allergens are different for each person; but stress, dust, car fumes and pollens & grasses are some of the more common asthma triggers.

Of course it’s almost impossible to avoid all of the triggers all of the time. And some asthmatics still get asthma attacks no matter how careful they are, and how many prescription medications they take… There is some good news that occasionally children will grow out of it.

Recent studies have shown that a large percentage of asthmatics found more relief from a combination of conventional and natural treatments, than using prescription drugs alone… One of the natural treatments used was aloe vera. Which isn’t too surprising because there have been regularly-published studies on the benefits of aloe vera for asthma as far back as 1951.

Aloe vera contains natural steroids and other compounds that inhibit or reduce inflammation. Aloe Vera works with the immune system to help reduce the symptoms of asthma. Some people describe asthma as the immune system being constantly on ‘red alert’, where the slightest trigger causes a full-blown asthma attack; whereas for people whose immune system is not on ‘red alert’ that same trigger might not even cause a sniffle.

Aloe Vera is an immune modulator - it helps balance and restore the immune system to its more natural resting state. It means the immune system is still going to be effective when it needs to be, but it can stop over-reacting to things like pollen and grasses, when it doesn’t need to.

It should be noted that aloe vera is not going to be helpful during an asthma attack - aloe should be seen as a long-term preventative measure, rather than for short-term relief of acute episodes.

Please click here for more information on which Aloe Vera product we recommend, and to find out more about pharmaceutical-grade Aloe Vera tablets.