Asthma and Ayurveda

Ayurveda is an ancient Indian medical science and as per ayurveda, there are different types of asthma. There are mainly three types of asthma that ayurveda classifies as elements based on your body type - air, water and fire. Before treating asthma with ayurveda, it's very necessary to understand the type of asthma the patient has. Ayurveda also relies a lot on restrictions of food, because the kind of food you have influences the asthma symptoms, sometimes positively and at other times negatively just like the natural remedies of asthma

Air element

This is the dry type of asthma that is seen in thin people who may have dry skin, constipation and sensitivity to cold climate. In such asthmatic patients, it is recommended to increase the fluid intake so as to maintain and increase the moisture and oxygen in the body. The head, chest, back should be covered on cold, windy days. You should massage your body with sesame oil and eat food, which is moist and warm. You should avoid having cold, dry food, diary products and nuts as these may not be very good for your asthmatic condition.

Fire element

This is the infectious type of asthma. It is seen mainly in people who have high body temperature, prone to infections, rashes, and bronchitis. It is recommended that these asthma patients drink plenty of water and avoid eating after 10 p.m. Eating late at night may cause the accumulation of toxins in the body to rise due to indigestion. Eating of fried food, meat, diary products should be avoided. Too much exposure to heat and cold should also be avoided. You should try and have more fruits and vegetables instead. You should also have more of turmeric, Echinacea in the form of tea and dandelion to prevent infections and to enhance the immune system. Since this kind of asthma is related to stress and anger, meditation and breathing exercises will be helpful.

Water element

This is a congestion type asthma, found mainly in people who are heavier in body weight, big boned, prone to colds, sinus congestion or chest congestion, water retention and are sensitive to cold and humid climates. If you are suffering from the congestion type asthma you should avoid dairy, wheat products, refined sugar and excess sweet, sour and salty foods. You should try to eat bitter, astringent, spicy foods to increase circulation and flow of mucus and to prevent congestion. You can also massage the chest and back with mustard oil to promote circulation in the chest. Balm of Gilead is also known to be very effective when rubbed on the chest. It prevents a normal cold from turning into pneumonia and can dilate the bronchial tubes to encourage deeper breathing. People who are prone to this type of asthma need to exercise daily and try to do some cardio exercise for a minimum of fifteen minutes per day. You should also avoid eating before 10:00am and after 9:00pm. This checks that you do not suffer from weak digestion, which is the prime cause of such kind of asthma. You should keep your head and torsos covered on cool days and avoid getting wet in the rain. You should have more of hot or lukewarm water and avoid cold water, beverages. This prevents mucus from getting clogged.