Asthma is one of more common diseases in our current society and requires pharmacology. It is a chronic disease of the respiratory tract characterized by inflammation and narrowing of the airways. Asthma symptoms include shortness of breath, coughing and wheezing.
Being a disease that affects the respiratory tract, people are not sure if it is a good idea to go running in case the symptoms worsen. Therefore, Is it a good idea to go running with asthma?
There are many studies that have wanted to analyze whether cardiovascular exercise can have more benefits than cons in people with this pathology, and it can be reliably said that going for a run is not only a good idea, but it can improve asthma symptoms.
The studies that can give us the most information are systematic reviews and meta-analyses, so we wanted to look for information on this topic in one of them.
This systematic review and meta-analysis wanted to investigate the effect that aerobic exercise had on patients with asthma. This study collected those studies that compared interventions with aerobic training and without intervention in order to observe if aerobic exercise had benefits, was neutral or, on the other hand, could be harmful.
Study participants were people over the age of 18 who had asthma and physical training included aerobic exercise performed at least twice a week for 8 or more weeks, as defined by the American College of Sports Medicine guidelines.
Among the cardiovascular exercises, In addition to running, others such as walking, swimming, cycling were included.…so it is a very complete study that not only looks at running, but also other sports that influence and generate stress on the respiratory tract. This is very beneficial because normally, a person who goes out for a run, usually accompanies that sport with other such as swimming or cycling. In fact, there are competitions, such as triathlons, that combine these sports.
The conclusion of this review and meta-analysis showed that aerobic exercise has a great beneficial effect on asthma control and lung functionbut no effect on markers of local airway inflammation (meaning no benefit or harm).
Despite this, the study authors themselves please take this information with caution since the medication, unless the doctor says otherwise, must continue to be taken despite the very likely benefits of going for a run.
It is also requested that these results do not extrapolate to children because asthma tends to differ between different population groups.
Nike Project Reduce Injuries in Runners
Precautions that we must follow when we go running
Always carry your medication with you
Although benefits have been shown in people with asthma, there is often a misconception with this type of information. That an intervention can help a population group, It does not mean that at the individual level it has to be beneficial yes or yes.
In other words, let’s imagine that out of 100 people with asthma a study is carried out in which it is concluded that there are benefits, but the benefits are reported by 90 people. What happens to the other 10? Those 10 people may not have good results and may even report problems.
Also keep in mind that in certain areas, pollen, dust, etc. can cause problems even though exercise itself may benefit. Therefore, never trust yourself and always carry the medication with you.
Warm up before going for a run
Warming up is essential not only so that there is no injury to the muscles, tendons, joints… but also for the lungs to adapt to training.
It may happen that if you go running without a previous warm-up you could have an asthma attack, so whenever you go to do something, remember to always do it for your health.
Run whenever you can after it rains
As mentioned above, dust and pollen is something that can cause asthma attacks and, precisely what it doesrain is to clean the environment of those particles that can harm the health of people with asthma.
In Vitónica | This summer train on the beach: a HIIT routine that you can do by the sea
In Vitónica | This is what happens to your body and your physique if you stop drinking alcohol completely, according to science
Images | istock