Asthma

Asthma and Chiropractic

Asthma is a chronic condition in your lungs that has two main components. When you have asthma, two things happen inside your lungs --- constriction, the tightening of the muscles surrounding the airways, and inflammation, the swelling and irritation of the airways. Constriction and inflammation cause narrowing of the airways, which may result in symptoms such as wheezing, coughing, chest tightness, or shortness of breath. Furthermore, there is increasing evidence that, if left untreated, asthma can cause long-term loss of lung function. When you have asthma and are exposed to a trigger, the airways leading to the lungs become more inflamed or swollen than usual, making it harder for you to breathe. The airways also get smaller due to a tightening of the muscles surrounding the airways, and they get "stuffed up" due to a build-up of mucus

Seventeen million Americans, five million of them children, have asthma. The incidence has increased over 50% in the last fifteen years. There are over five hundred thousands hospitalizations each year, making asthma on of the top five most expensive diseases our healthcare system must cover.