What Options Are Available for Treating Asthma?
Question: I have suffered from asthma for many years. I am taking a lot of medication, but am getting no better. Can you help? Answer: One non-conventional approach to the treatment of asthma is that of Dr. Konstantin Buteyko, a Russian physician who has employed this approach for more than 20 years. Dr. Buteyko asserted that the cause of asthma was overbreathing, or hyperventilation. Hyperventilation causes the body to diminish the amount of carbon dioxide in the lungs and the blood. As a result, the air passages in the lung constrict and asthma is the result. What about deep breathing that has been recommended by yoga teachers, coaches and even doctors? Isn’t that good for you? There is no documentation in the medical literature that demonstrates that deep breathing is good for you. However, there are numerous studies demonstrating deep breathing’s detrimental effects. Normal people breathe between four to six liters of air a minute. Asthmatics typically breathe 2 to 4 times that amo
