natural help for viral induced asthma

[mama4fish]

My 5yr old daughter has viral induced asthma and nothing is helping (except oral prednisone) which she has been taking so much of lately.  For those of you that went the natural route can you tell me exactly what you did?  There is not a naturopath doctor in my area that I'm aware of.  We are desperate for help for our daughter.  We are so stressed and worried every time she gets sick.  We are having her tonsils & adnenoids removed in a couple weeks to see if that helps.

[FergalEmmanuel]

This is really quality post. Virus-induced asthma refers to inflammation and constriction of the airways that is triggered by a viral respiratory infection. Symptoms may be best managed by taking measures to speed up recovery from the viral infection e.g. rest and fluids. Specific asthma medications may include bronchodilators and steroid inhalers. Management of asthma, and medications used to prevent and treat symptoms depends on the frequency and severity of symptoms. For some people, especially children, symptoms of asthma may only be present with an undercurrent viral illness, and are best treated with reliever medications when symptoms occur. Thanks for sharing.

[mama4fish]

Ok it's been two weeks since she had her tonsils out.  She had really bad ear aches for about 9-10 days and couldn't eat much, but once that healed she is back to her wonderful self.  This week out of the blue she started throwing up just for one day and she had a sore throat... my heart sank as she started coughing... and coughing... so we kept up with pulmicort 2x a day and albuterol for a few days and now she is symptom free.  Normally she would be in really bad shape even with the treatments.  One thing I've started is limiting her dairy (because after the surgery she wasn't allowed to have any) and the first time she tried to eat yogurt she started coughing really bad.  We haven't cut dairy out completely... maybe in time?? we'll see.   Another thing is I started giving her OPC's in drink form, and fish oil.   I bought some NAC but when I tried to disquise it in her food she could taste it and wouldn't eat it.... kids!  :)

[hava]

I would still say, delay the removal of tonsils, until she has done pranayam regularly for 8 weeks.

[mama4fish]

Thank you for your help! :)   I know a lot of people have been telling me not to have her tonsils taken out, but I have prayed and feel that this is the best thing for her.  She has large tonsils(+3)  and presumably large adenoids as well.  It's more of a breathing issue than anything.  She has developed some sleep apnea because of it.  When she is on prednisone it seems to go away, possibly because it reduces swelling.  I looked up some studies on-line that seem to confirm that having them removed showed marked improvement over asthma symptoms long term..less med's, less sick days, etc..
I wouldn't have them removed unless I really felt it was necessary, believe me I don't even like giving her tylenol.

I tried the pranayam myself, it was pretty easy so I think my daughter would be able to do it.  
If any of you have any experience with having your childs tonsils removed and it helped (or didn't help) their asthma I'd love to hear about it.   I will let you know after she has them removed if there were any changes with her asthma.    

[hava]

Do this pranayam with your daughter, for 10 minutes, three times a day.The extra oxygen going into the lungs will help to control the asthma. Allow 8 weeks to see the benefit of pranayam. Do not remove tonsils and adnenoids.
Also do ujjayi pranayam 7 times - breathe in tightening the throat(reverse of clearing the throat).
Build up your timing gradually.If you feel tired or dizzy, stop and resume after one minute.
Anulom Vilom pranayam –
Close your right nostril with thumb and deep breath-in through left nostril  
then – close left nostril with two fingers and breath-out through right nostril  
then -keeping the left nostril closed  deep breath-in through right nostril
then - close your right nostril with thumb and breath-out through left nostril.
This is one cycle of anulom vilom.
Repeat this cycle for 15 to 30  minutes twice a day.
Children under 15 years – do 5 to 10 minutes twice a day.
You can do this before breakfast/lunch/dinner or before bedtime or in bed.Remember to take deep long breaths into the lungs.You can do this while sitting on floor or chair or lying in bed.
March 17, 2011

[Tammy2009]

oops forgot ...... vitamin D is a very good vitamin for both boosting the immune system and helping asthma.  Omega 3s, vitamin C and E should also help.  Another one that my respiralogist told me about is N-acetyl cysteine which is very good at limiting cold/flu symptoms and helps thin the mucus.  

Talk to your doctor before starting any of them to get the right doses (especially the last one - NAC - because I'm not sure if it has been tested for children)

[Tammy2009]

I would get a second opinion of getting her tonsils and adneoids removed ..... they are there to help fight infections so without them she may have a harder time fighting infection.  Unless they are very large and swelling to the point of blocking her airway.

Make sure yours and her technique for using the inhalers or nebs is proper by showing the doctor and getting their opinion.  If you are suppose to increase her meds at any point when she is sick, start treating aggressively at ANY sign of a cold or infection.  The earlier you start the meds, the better they will work.

Good luck and hopefully that helped.