Monday, February 23, 2009

Enteric Coated Fish Oil Can Help With Asthma

By Dr. Bill

I'm still enjoying the Florida sunshine as I write because my trip back to Long Island was delayed. One of my large family, (of cats) had to have surgery, and he can't travel until at least Wednesday. I'll just sit here and suffer in the 70 degree weather.

A friend of mine coached girls basketball for many years, and over that time he had a small handfull of them suffer from what is called "sports" or "exercise induced" asthma. The vigorous exercise triggered an acute narrowing of the airways, making it very hard for them to breathe.

99% of the time this was alleviated by the use of an inhaler, and 30 minutes of inactivity. Then, the girl was good to go again. These girls were exceptions to the general rule, in that most kids with this problem opt not to participate in athletics, or anything strenuous. Inactivity is not a good habit to get into at any age, but this is what happens, and many misinformed parents push their kids in this direction, not wanting them to get hurt, or embarrassed.

On my friend's team they had a remarkable system. The other girls would help out with the inhaler while the assistent coach supervised. And the affected girl's breathing would get back to normal as she calmed down.

Then, as if nothing had happened, the girl would leap right back into the game.

I've just seen a study showing that a low salt diet combined with pharmaceutical grade fish oil supplementation reduces the incidence of bronchoconstriction, or "sports" asthma.

The study, which was done in 2006 at the University of Indiana, demonstrated post-exercise lung function of adults with moderate to mild persistant asthma, improved by 64%. Their use of emergency inhalers decreased by roughly 31%.

There was a key finding in the study that grabbed my attention. While on the diet and supplementing with fish oil, airway pro-inflammatory cells and markers were reduced in the participants. These are responsible for airway inflammation and airway obstruction.

So about that other key factor - salt. Where are kids getting it these days?

Cheetos, hot dogs, Doritos, frozen pizza, potato chips, and most microwavable food. All loaded with salt.

If you spend much time around kinds, you know they're putting this stuff away by the kilo.

I advise you to get rid of this stuff if it's in your home. And everyone will benefit if you start introducing your kids to better food.

And enteric coated pharmaceutical grade fish oil isn't just for yourself, it's for the whole family. It's never too late to start everyone on the path to healthy eating and living.

Good food and good exercise, plus enteric coated pharmaceutical grade fish oil, mean your chances of contracting this type of asthma may be very slim indeed.

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