Twenty million Americans -- one out of every 15 U.S. citizens -- are living with asthma, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. Asthma is a chronic respiratory illness that frequently produces excess mucus in the lungs and...
Allegra is prescribed for the treatment of seasonal allergies, hives and itchy skin. It is an antihistamine. The immune system in the body produces histamine to combat allergens and other irritants. Too much histamine causes nasal congestion,...
Asthma is a condition that is marked by inflammation of the airways. This inflammation causes swelling around the airways, making it harder for air to get in and out of the lungs. One of the most common forms of asthma is allergy-induced asthma,...
Wheezing is an irregularity in the respiratory system that deserves attention. The general mechanism of wheezing is that the airways somewhere in the respiratory system are becoming restricted, reducing your ability to bring in oxygen. In extreme...
For a normal, healthy adult, the heart beats between 60 and 100 beats per minute. If you are extremely active or exercise regularly, or you take blood pressure medication, your heart beat will average 55 beats or less. Sometimes, your heart might...
Herbal supplements have been used for centuries by many cultures. Different parts of a plant are used for different types of remedies. Leaves are dried, cut and encapsulated or steeped to make tea. Roots are ground to make a powder that can be...
Albuterol is a medication administered as both a pill and an inhalant. It is sold as a pill under such brand names as Ventolin, Proventil and Volmax, and as an inhaler under brand names ProAir HFA, Accuneb and ReliOn Ventolin HFA. These may be...
Symlin is an injectable drug used in the treatment of both type I and type II diabetes. A multi-tasking drug, it lowers blood sugar in three ways: it reduces the amount of sugar produced by the liver, it reduces the rate at which food moves...
Metformin is a drug used to lower blood sugar in people who have diabetes. Metformin works by improving the body's response to insulin and reducing the amount of sugar that is produced by the liver. Because metformin can cause several side...
Asthma is a common ailment that affects patients' respiratory systems and leads to wheezing and coughing and increases difficulty in breathing. Asthma is caused by an over-reaction of the immune system. In asthmatics, the immune system has a...
Herbal medicine, also known as phytomedicine or botanical medicine, is the use of berries, roots, bark, flowers, leaves or seeds to make medicinal preparations. Medical herbalism existed long before history recorded its use. Ancient Chinese and...
Stroke is the third-leading cause of death in the United States, according to the American Stroke Association. Obesity is largely to blame for this, and cutting calories may be a preferred way to lose weight, making diet colas a favorite choice....
Heart palpitations are irregular heartbeats that may cause the individual experiencing the palpitation to feel as though the heart is pounding, fluttering, skipping beats or stopping briefly. Since palpitations feel so disconcerting, they can...
The National Center for Health Statistics estimates that 9.6 percent of all American children have the lung disease pediatric asthma. Your asthmatic child can become exercise intolerant, or unable to finish physical activities because of breathing...
Excessive mucus and cough are indicative of a disease affecting the airways and lungs. Mucus serves to trap debris or pathogens, and the cough serves to expel it from the respiratory tract. As such, cough and mucus production can serve useful...
Stress occurs occasionally for many people and leads to anxiety about certain situations. The anxiety often helps people deal with stressful conditions they are facing, but sometimes stress and anxiety can become overwhelming. Some causes of...
Asthma is a disease that affects the airways, or bronchial tubes. Normally, when a breath is taken in, air travels to the lungs through the bronchial tubes. In asthma, the bronchial tubes are inflamed and during this time, the bronchial tubes...
It may take time and a lot of diligence to find the right medications, at the right dose, with the least problems and with the easiest lifestyle modifications to effectively lower blood pressure, but the risks are high for health complications if...
The medical term used to describe a racing heart rate is tachycardia. The heart rate is regulated by the autonomic nervous system and cannot be controlled by the individual. They can slow the rate by becoming calmer, but they cannot control how...
Taking caffeine pills without food may cause upset stomach for some people. Caffeine is a stimulant drug that may cause nausea, stomach bloating and diarrhea in some. Everyone has a different level of tolerance for the drug and it will not cause...
Palpitations are sensations in your chest, neck or throat that feel as though your heart is racing or pounding. They are not typically serious, according to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, but they can indicate medical conditions in need of...
The American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology states that more than 50 million people in the U.S. have allergies and/or asthma. As common as it is, asthma has no cure. Certain medications, however, can both prevent symptoms from occurring...