Headache - A Common Asthma Issue

Suffering from asthma is something that hundreds of millions of people around the world do. More than twenty three million people in America alone have asthma, making it one of the most common health issues in existence. If you've been recently diagnosed with asthma then you're probably already aware of the breathing complications it will cause. But it might surprise you to learn that asthma can cause a very wide range of other illnesses and issues ranging from the minor to the very serious. Of these, headaches are certainly among the most common. Understanding why asthma can trigger a headache and just how to help you avoid them.

First you'll want to review just how asthma affects your body so that you can see why headaches are so common. When you suffer from asthma, your air passages will be inflamed. This inflammation will narrow the opening that air passes through and make it more difficult to breathe. This, in turn, will reduce the amount of oxygen your blood is able to deliver to your body. You may be able to notice the difficulty breathing, and in some cases you may not even be able to notice that it is happening unless you pay close attention to your breaths. But either way, the reduced oxygen levels can have a huge impact on numerous things.

Your entire body, every part of it, needs oxygen to function properly. When different parts of the body fail to receive the appropriate levels of oxygen, they'll start to function at reduced capacity. In the brain, this can often begin to manifest as a headache. It's not only your body's way of telling your hat something could be wrong, but a basic symptom of not having enough oxygen. Asthma sufferers frequently suffer from headaches to the lower levels of oxygen that they are often able to provide to their brain.

Obviously you'll want to maximize your oxygen intake in order to prevent and reduce headaches. There are several ways to do so including medications like breathing treatments and steroids to open up your airways, oxygen supplements to ensure you're getting the most oxygen, and more. A headache can be almost as debilitating as an asthma attack so it's important to manage your asthma as best you can in order to improve your breathing function and reduce the severity and frequency of the headaches that asthma can all too often play a role in creating.