Cold weather-induced asthma?

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Feb 2012
9:53am, 1 Feb 2012
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RichHL
I enjoyed - for a given value of enjoyment - my track session yesterday evening. I had no more problems breathing than usual but some people looked a little shocked when I was coughing at the trackside between efforts. However, I had a bit of an asthma attack in the night and got very little sleep as a result.

Is there any evidence that heavy exercise in cold weather can induce an asthma attack? Mine didn't start until a good five or six hours after the session finished so I think in this case it's just post hoc, propter hoc but I wanted to hear from other asthma sufferers or Fetchie medics. Should I take an extra scoosh of Fostair at night after a hard, low-temperature effort to help prevent another sleepless, wheezy night?
Feb 2012
10:00am, 1 Feb 2012
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Stumpy
Cold air can be a trigger for some people, yes, wearing a buff or scarf over your mouth can help as it keeps the air your breathe warmer and damper.

With respect to medical advice about it, ask one of the docs here for proper advice, but might be worth taking a couple of puffs of your reliever (the blue one) before exercising in cold air. Thats usually the advice for exercise induced asthma. Surely better to prevent the response than try and deal with it after. Speak to your asthma nurse in the surgery about whether to modify your steroid dose in the winter.
Feb 2012
10:10am, 1 Feb 2012
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RichHL
Thanks, Stumpy. I had a couple of puffs of reliever before I started and needed one when I finished. It's usually the way things go. I need to see my asthma nurse anyway as the Fostair doesn't seem to be working as well as my previous medication.
Feb 2012
10:14am, 1 Feb 2012
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WobblingTime
I rarely have an asthma attack immediately after contact with an aggravating factor. It usually makes its presence felt a few hours later, as the inflammation increases. Apart from peanuts, that's almost immediate.

Cold doesn't usually affect me, unless I'm doing something speedy. I'll have a couple if puffs of my blue inhaler before I start and then another couple of puffs once I've finished each rep.

Hope you feel better today.
Feb 2012
10:19am, 1 Feb 2012
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Stumpy
What were you on before, rich?
Feb 2012
8:55pm, 1 Feb 2012
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RichHL
I had a brown inhaler: beclametasone and the usual blue preventer.
Feb 2012
9:01pm, 1 Feb 2012
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Kimbles67
I have found if I keep my neck and chest warm, it cuts down on the problems I have. I found that my chest was tight during and for a few hours after and my inhaler wasnt making a wit of difference. Since making sure I wear a base layer, a top layer, a buff and a hat, I have managed to cut down on my breathing problems. Basically if I sweat like billy-o I'm fine. HTH.
Feb 2012
9:11pm, 1 Feb 2012
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RichHL
I usually wear a buff on cold days but I didn't yesterday. I'll bear that in mind for tomorrow's run which looks like it's going to be another cold one.
Feb 2012
9:39pm, 1 Feb 2012
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JohnnyO
Fostair is a combination of steroid preventer and beta agonist reliever.
If its all you have, then fair enough, but it is essentially designed as a long acting drug which will reduce the need to use a simple blue reliever.
It probably takes too long to act as a reliever- I would imagine you would be better off having the foster twice a day, and then a simple salbutamol inhaler as a reliever.
Feb 2012
9:48pm, 1 Feb 2012
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RichHL
I take one puff of Fostair morning and evening but I have a salbutamol reliever which I use as required. The trouble is that I require it quite often. The Fostair was supposed to reduce my need for the reliever.

I think I need to go back to my asthma nurse.

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Maintained by RichHL
I enjoyed - for a given value of enjoyment - my track session yesterday evening. I had no more probl...

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