ASTHMA AND ALLERGIES
"Water can prevent and alleviate many of our symptoms"
Most sufferers of asthma and allergies attempt to modify their environment to help cut down on the sneezing, sniffling and wheezing. Although physicians focus primarily on cutting down on air pollutants and toxins in the home, sometimes they overlook the part that ordinary tap water can play in making asthma and allergies worse.
Checking out your drinking water might be a good idea if you or a family member has asthma and allergies. A Belgian study recently concluded that chlorine, a common chemical added to water to help kill bacteria, could be making asthma in children worse. Fumes from chlorine in pools, and even in the shower, could trigger an attack for some people with asthma and allergies. Those who suffer from asthma and allergies are often sensitive to gases that are produced when chlorine sanitizes bacteria in sweat or urine. These gases can build up in an enclosed shower, irritating the lungs of children and adults who have asthma and allergies.
Other chemicals in drinking water can affect people with asthma and allergies. Fluoride is added to most municipal water supplies to help fight tooth decay in children. But for some people with asthma and allergies, fluoride can compromise their health. Allergists for decades have known that documented cases exist of both adults and children with asthma and allergies who have suffered severe reactions to fluoride. In 1967, the Annals of Allergy published a study finding infants, children and one adult who had allergic skin reactions and asthma attacks after being exposed to tap water treated with fluoride. Households with members who have asthma and allergies can filter their tap water with reverse osmosis filtration to eliminate chlorine and fluoride from their water.
Asthma, which affects over 12 million children in North America alone and causes the deaths of several thousand each year, is a direct result of increased histamine production. Dehydration initiates exaggerated histamine production as a water regulating control. It is well known that asthmatics have excessive levels of histamines in their lung tissue causing constriction of the bronchial passages and increased mucus build up. Water is used in the lungs to keep the tissue moist, but each time we exhale, we expel moisture from our lungs. Under normal hydrated conditions the moisture is rapidly replaced. If we are in a dehydrated state then the tissue inside the lungs begins to coat with mucus to prevent drying. It has been demonstrated in many animal studies that an increase in water intake will reduce histamine levels and over a 2 to 3 week period restore normal hydration to lung tissue and reduce mucus build up. Once this occurs, the bronchial passages begin to open and normal breathing is restored. The same histamine related effects apply to allergies, and again, significant benefits can result from an increased intake of healthy water
A recent study found that dehydration plays a significant role in asthma and allergies. One researcher shows that the lack of water vapour in the lungs causes the airways to constrict and for the asthmatic’s lungs to produce mucus, the two factors that cause an asthma attack. In short, With asthma the free passage of air is obstructed by mucus plugs so that water does not leave the body in the form of vapor - the winter steam. Increased water intake will prevent asthma attacks. The researcher recommends that people with asthma drink at least 10 eight-ounce glasses of water every day, along with a pinch of salt, and to avoid caffeine. Asthmatics need to take more salt to break the mucus plugs in the lungs that obstruct the free flow of air in and out of the air sacs.
Interestingly enough, folk remedies for asthma and allergies bear out the water theory as well. Home cures include drinking hot water and inhaling steam from a bowl or kettle.
Reverse osmosis filtering can remove all the chemicals and pollutants for drinking water by squeezing it through a semi-permeable membrane. This is the same technology used to desalinate seawater to turn it into drinking water. This method of filtering can remove virtually all of the fluoride and chlorine out of tap water. This can be helpful for the family member with asthma and allergies who has sensitivities to these chemicals.
People with asthma and allergies can control their home environment even more by filtering chlorine and fluoride out of their tap water, allowing everyone to breathe easier.