The new report suggests that long-acting beta agonists have beneficial effects in patients with moderate-to-severe COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) and do not appear to increase the risk of respiratory deaths.

In the study, Dr. Gustavo J. Rodrigo, from Hospital Central de las Fuerzas Armadas, Montevideo, Uruguay and colleagues pooled data from 27 randomized clinical trials that compared two long-acting beta agonists with placebo or with two long-acting “anticholinergic” asthma drugs (for example, Spiriva) in patients with moderate to severe COPD.

Compared with placebo, long-acting beta agonist therapy reduced severe COPD flare-ups by 21 percent and did not increase death from COPD. Treatment with a long-acting beta agonist had benefits “in terms of lung function, quality of life, and use of daily rescue medication”.

The pooled data also showed that treatment with Spiriva decreased the incidence of severe COPD flare-ups compared with a long-acting beta agonist. Overall, daily tiotropium (Spiriva) appears to be foundational as a long-acting bronchodilator in COPD, despite some equivocation on this matter in current COPD treatment guidelines.

For further information, visit: Reuters

Are you one among those who usually spend countless springs with red, itchy watery eyes? Help for you in this particular problem is much closer than you think.

Before you try to any dangerous, strong medications for your spring time allergy, first try to look at the other alternatives which are available for your allergy relief.

Essential oils for better relief!

With the great healing power of aromatherapy, it is not only possible to reduce the symptoms of allergy but at the same time you can completely remove these seasonal allergy manifestations.

Many essential oils are actually known for their potential anti-bacterial and anti-microbial properties. Very few of you might be aware of selected group of essential oils which can also serve with anti-histaminic and also anti-allergenic properties.

Certain kinds of essential oils like German chamomile, helicrysum, and also black pepper are very helpful for you in healing spring time allergies. Many researches had even proved that using blends made with these oils can work well and provides you a better relief for all spring time seasonal allergies, without any stern side effects.

Ragweed is the most common plant found in eastern states and also in the mid west.

A single plant can easily produce almost 1 billion pollen grains in one season.

These ragweed pollens are the main sources for developing ragweed allergy.

If you are allergic to this ragweed pollen seeds, then immediate exposure to these allergens can often cause running nose, itchy, red swollen eyes and also sneezes.

Even stuffy nose and inflamed itchy throat are signs of ragweed allergy.

People who have severe form of ragweed allergy can have chances to experience asthma attacks, impaired sleep, chronic sinusitis and also severe headache.

Identifying ragweed allergy requires a careful medical record, a physical exam or any tests [Allergy test to identify the allergy]. Skin sensitivity test is considered as the best approach to confirm the suspected ragweed allergy.

For this, your skin is pricked with pollen extracted from ragweed. If you are sensitive towards this particular plant pollen, then as a result your skin can turn red, itchy and swollen.

Among four year-olds attending Head Start programs in New York City, those who had older siblings were more likely to experience respiratory symptoms including an episode of wheezing in the past year than those who were oldest or only children.

Children with at least two older siblings were also 50% more likely than other children to have gone to an emergency department or been hospitalized overnight for breathing problems.

These findings from the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health were recently pre-published online in the journal Clinical and Experimental Allergy.

One possible explanation for the association is that children with older siblings have more exposure to respiratory infections at an early age than oldest or only children. Respiratory infections are a common cause of wheezing in very young children.

This study shows that children with older siblings may be appropriate targets for interventions to reduce the risk of infections that may lead to hospitalization.

Source: Medical News Today

As spring season comes, you have to think about spraying your home quickly.

This is especially important when you are suffering from asthma.

In winter months, dust and other allergens collect, making dangerous asthma triggers in your home.

You have to follow simple steps to protect yourself and your family from potential indoor asthma triggers.

Steps to prevent indoor asthma triggers

Dusting properly:

During the months of winter, dust might have gathered, so it is the time to clean every corner by moving the furniture aside. Curtains and window blinds are the places where dust collects, so remove and clean them properly.

If you identify that dust mites can trigger your asthma, you can reduce by vacuuming and dusting all areas using a vacuum cleaner with good suction and a filtered exhaust. You have to change the vacuum cleaner filters regularly.

Even though you are cleaning your home for spring, you should be careful as dust particles will stay in the air for at least two hours after cleaning process and these particles can trigger your asthma symptoms. One thing you can do is while cleaning your home; you have to keep the doors and windows open.

Despite of treating many bacterial infections, penicillin is considered as quite potential drug which can cause many life threatening allergic reactions.

Penicillin allergies are the most common form of drug allergy and are mainly responsible for skin rashes.

It can be very difficult for you to judge whether it is a rash caused due to penicillin allergy or due to some other allergic reaction.

Do you think all the adverse reactions associated with penicillin are allergic? Then, it is very important for you to know that all the adverse reactions shown by penicillin or any other antibiotics are not considered as allergic.

Genuine allergic reactions caused due to penicillin allergy, mainly involves your immune system. A true allergic reaction caused due to penicillin allergy can show its effect from a simple rash to a life threatening anaphylactic reaction.

Adults can become the main victims for this dangerous penicillin allergy!

Penicillin allergy is most common form of drug allergy which usually takes place in most of the young adults and this allergic reaction can take place at any age. It can cause potentially life threatening allergic reactions, but fortunately, most of the kids having penicillin allergy can experience only mild forms of allergic reactions. They can be as simple as skin rashes and hives.

World asthma day is organized by Global Initiative For Asthma (GINA) in collaboration with asthma educators and health care groups for raising awareness about asthma and improving asthma care through out the world.

The theme of this year’s event will be “you can control your asthma”. Latest research on Asthma reveals that more than 300 million people around the world are suffering from Asthma.

Plan your World Asthma Day Event at Global Intiative for Asthma

Asthma Video by Dustmitex.com

Have you ever experienced any itching or tingling sensation after biting banana or peach?

Experiencing itching of lips, tongue or throat immediately after eating certain kind of foods is the most common sign of having oral allergy syndrome.

This kind of food allergy is most commonly seen in hay fever sufferers and it is mainly caused whenever you are in contact with certain foods to which you are truly allergic.

Oral allergy syndrome is mainly caused whenever there is cross-connectivity between proteins present in fruits and vegetables and the pollen.

The proteins responsible for oral allergy syndrome are easily broken down while cooking or processing of vegetables or fruits. So, this oral allergy syndrome eventually doesn’t occur with cooked or baked foods.

Most of you with oral allergy syndrome can identify the allergy with certain symptoms which can include itching, occasional swelling of lips, tongue, and also throat, whenever certain kinds of fruits and vegetables are touched. These symptoms usually last from few seconds to minutes and very rarely they can lead to more serious health conditions.

If you experience multiple symptoms due to your regular exposure to several chemicals, then you are said to be suffering with multiple chemical sensitivity.

This exposure to chemicals can occur as a major event, such as regular use of perfumes, diesel, smoke or petrol.

As a result of this chemical exposure, you can develop sensitivity to those particular chemicals and can experience several reactions after a certain level till which you can tolerate.

Multiple chemical sensitivity is more common among females when compared with men.

In addition to this, about 40% of the people who have developed chronic fatigue and 16% of those who have fibromyalgia can have chances to develop this particular sensitivity towards exposure of chemicals.

Some of the experts consider this disorder to be a psychological cause, probably a type of anxiety disorder which is quite similar to agoraphobia or a panic attack. Other people believe that this multiple chemical sensitivity is an allergic reaction.

In fact, many changes in your immune system can takes place, if you have multiple chemical sensitivity, supporting the idea of allergic reaction. However, these changes in immune system cannot be persistent, among such people having this syndrome and the main cause of the disease still remains unknown.

Food allergies are one of the most challenging allergies you have to deal with.

Many people prefer to dine out at some time or other.When you want to dine out, it will be frustrating for you if you have food allergies.

You have to take precautions while dining out for keeping yourself away from food allergies.

Avoid places that cause food allergy:

Bakeries: You will find baked goods all in one place that are kept next to each other. When foods are placed in such environment, spread of allergens from one food to another takes place. In bakeries, utensils and tongs are frequently reused.

Buffets: In buffet systems, foods are kept in dishes very close such that allergens can spread from one dish or utensil to another.

Restaurants that can create risks: Depending on the type of allergy, you can simply remove some restaurants from your list. If you are allergic to sea foods, you can simply avoid sea food restaurants. If you are allergic to nuts or peanuts, then you should avoid Asian restaurants as most Asian recipes include nuts.