The disease can affect at any age, bearing the fact that most people suffering from asthma are adults. The symptoms of asthma are caused on account of bronchial spasms i.e. the sudden narrowing of the branching tubes that lead into the lungs

Asthma is a chronic respiratory ailment that causes wheezing, coughing, chest congestion, shortness of breath and anxiety about being unable to breath. More than 4,000 people die every year as a result of complications arising from serious asthma attacks, an increase of over thirty per cent since 1980. Among asthma related deaths, children are more likely to die in summer, while people above 65 years of age are more likely to die in winter.

Many people consider asthma a childhood illness, and there''s certainly no shortage of kids with this disease. However, the disease can affect at any age, bearing the fact that most people suffering from asthma are adults. The symptoms of asthma are caused on account of bronchial spasms i.e. the sudden narrowing of the branching tubes that lead into the lungs. While asthma and hay fever type allergies are distinct conditions, they overlap, especially among those under age 15.

Histamine, the chemical responsible for allergy symptoms, seems to play a role in asthma attacks as well. Factors other than histamine, which can trigger an attack, are - strenuous exercise, cigarette smoke, respiratory infections, industrial chemicals, aspirin, indoor pollution and the sulfites added to foods. Stress also plays a role in asthma.

Severe anxiety can trigger asthma attacks, and stress generally aggravates asthma symptoms. On account of the side effects posed by the synthetic drugs, people have become more interested in treating asthma with natural or phytomedicines, like Vasaka, Ephedra, Liquorice, Tinsporia cardifolia, Solanum xanthocarpum, tea, coffee caffeinated cola drinks, cocoa, and chocolate.

These popular beverages, as well as chocolate, are derived from plants and may be counted as herbal products. All of them contain caffeine, theobromine and theophylline, which help to stop bronchospasma and open constricted bronchial passages.

Some useful herbs
Ephedra (Ephedra sinica): The Chinese call it ma-huang and have been used for thousands of years to treat asthma. The herb contains active chemical constituents, ephedrine and pseudoephedrine, which are used as bronchodilators, nasal decongestants, and central nervous stimulants.

Liquorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra): Liquorice tea of the rhizomes is recommended for sore throat, cough, and asthma. About three cups of Liquorice and its extracts could be consumed in a day. The chief chemical constituent responsible for bronchodilation is glycyrrhizin, a potassium and calcium salt of glycyrrhizinic acid.

Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica): 400 years ago, a British herbalist Nicholas Culperper claimed that nettle roots or leaves, used in juice or tea were safe and sure medicines to open the pipes and passages of the lungs. The juice of the roots and leaves, when mixed with honey or sugar relieves bronchial troubles. Research has confirmed that this plant is potential anti-histamine and is increasingly recommended nowadays for treating asthma and hay fever.

-- The authors are students at S.G.R.S. College of Pharmacy, Saswad, Pune