What are your thoughts on breathing techniques vs medication?

[joshuap001]

Hi Everyone,

I am sufferer of asthma, and it has been brought to my attention as to whether the effectiveness of specific breathing techniques vs medication could assist in increasing lung capacity.

Breathing techniques:

Some sources suggest that breathing exercises can help alleviate asthma symptoms while also improving lung strength, capacity, and overall health. Yet I have found that many articles have varied opinions on whether breathing techniques help individuals with asthma or not. According to the article Breathing Exercises for Asthma it is stated that, many individuals are eager to use non-pharmacological therapy to enhance asthma management, particularly breathing control exercises, but the data base has been insufficient until recently. Other recent research, on the other hand, has led to the inclusion of breathing exercises as an add-on treatment in asthmatic systematic reviews and guidelines. The role of breathing exercises has been debated, in part because some proponents have made excessive, unjustified claims of efficacy (Thomas & Bruton 2014). According to the article Breathing Exercises to Increase Lung Capacity, it has been stated that the diaphragmatic and pursed-lip breathing techniques are the most effective exercises in increasing lung capacity of any individual. Diaphragmatic breathing involves deep breathing to engage the diaphragm which distinctly improves lung capacity. Also, by reducing the work of breathing by keeping your airways open longer, pursed-lip breathing can slow down the rate of breathing. In doing so, the lungs are more likely to function properly, and the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide is improved.

To undertake the diaphragmatic breathing exercise, you need to do -

-Relax your shoulders and sit back or lie down.

-Place one hand on your belly and one on your chest.

-Inhale through your nose for two seconds, feeling the air move into your abdomen and feeling your stomach move out. Your stomach should move more than your chest does.

-Breathe out for two seconds through pursed lips while pressing on your abdomen.

-Repeat.

To undertake the pursed-lip breathing exercise, you need to do -

-Inhale slowly through your nostrils.

-Purse your lips, as if pouting or about to blow on something.

-Breathe out as slowly as possible through pursed lips. This should take at least twice as long as it did to breathe in.

-Repeat.

Medication:

Even though most individuals in clinical trials attain high levels of control with targeted pharmacotherapy, poor control is prevalent in "real-world" management, with over-reliance on rescue bronchodilator medication and persistent symptoms and quality of life deterioration. A ventilator assists with the hyperventilation symptoms during an asthma attack to assist in clearing the airways of an individual. Although neither condition has a cure, there are treatments available. Inhaling medication directly into the airways with a handheld inhaler or a nebulizer is the most common treatment option. These drugs work by reducing inflammation, opening up the airways, and clearing any mucus build-up in the lungs. If you are a sufferer from asthma and would like some assistance have a look at the photo attached which is able to display and help with what to use and when to use it.

I would love to hear what you guys think and if anyone has been recommended certain breathing techniques or medication such as preventors by medical professional. Is anyone relying on breathing exercises alone? Love to hear about your experiences with this.

I hope you found this helpful!

Thanks,

Joshua Pellicone

[Poobah]

If asthma was a one off disease then a one size fits all treatment could be recommended. However, asthma varies, not only in phenotype but from individual to individual, environment to environment and so on. Individual treatment is a personal journey in order to discover the best fit meds and treatments. One inhaler may suit you, whereas it may not suit me in terms of treatment and side effects.

No one would recommend putting aside pharmaceutical treatments for breathing exercises as asthma can be unpredictable and life threatening. However, breathing exercises as an add on treatment is definitely worth trying and many have enjoyed good outcomes. If you can access a specialist respiratory physiotherapist, then go for it. Never alter your prescribed meds without medical supervision.

BTW, there is GINA, globally agreed asthma strategy: archbronconeumol.org/en-glo...

But be aware that not all treatments are available in every country. For example, Fostair is available in the UK but not the US.

Ideally, each patient should have an asthma plan, which details their daily treatment and how to escalate that with flare ups and what action to take if things decline further. Even if someone rarely, if ever, suffers asthma attacks, it's still ideal to have a personalised plan.

[Lysistrata Administrator Community Ambassador in reply to Poobah]

I agree, particularly on the not stopping medications in favour of breathing exercises. They can help, and some people find techniques like Buteyko, if done properly, mean they're able to reduce some of their medications with medical supervision. But no, they aren't an alternative to taking medications, and there have definitely been some excessive claims. I would say the people who claimed to have cured asthma with it never actually had asthma to start with. Asthma is both underdiagnosed and overdiagnosed because it's hard *to* diagnose, and not everyone with shortness of breath has a lung condition.

Joshua - as Poobah has said, asthma isn't one size fits all and you need your own treatment and management plan. Please do see your own doctor if you don't have one. I saw you're in Australia, who I believe are fairly good with asthma care. Probably better than the UK, not that it's hard because for a developed country, we're not great at asthma care (as a country - not that we don't have some great individual healthcare professionals or clinics).

I would point out that while GINA are global guidelines, not everyone uses them to guide local/regional policy or in everyday practice. In the UK as far as I'm aware the 'official' guidelines are the BTS guidelines (which are a complete maze and hard to follow, I can't even blame anyone for not being able to find stuff in there! GINA is definitely easier to use).

[Troilus]

I think there is room for both in the treatment of asthma. I don’t think breathing exercises alone are enough to give control as they don’t prevent inflammation or bronchospasm. However, improved lung volumes and a strengthened diaphragm are an asset