Exercise induced shortness of breath is not always Asthma

Exercise-induced asthma like symptoms may not be asthma after all

For many years, medical practitioners thought that the significant shortness of breath experienced after some amount of exercise was mainly due to exacerbation of asthma. However, recent research suggests that this was not the case. In fact, the commonest reason for people to demonstrate asthma like symptoms is reaching their natural limits of stamina and not any medical disorders.

The puzzling factor with the previous assumption regarding asthma is the main cause for exercise-induced shortness of breath is that many of these patients do not respond to the usual asthma relieving medications. In addition, such patients did not demonstrate any abnormal signs in their lungs before starting the exercise. If it is an asthmatic, this should not be the case, as they should shown signs of asthma even when the symptoms are not apparent. 

While the research study revealed that asthma was not the cause for most instances of exercise-induced asthma, it also proved that there can be other disorders which can also lead to exercise induced shortness of breath. For instance, mild degree of scholiosis can also cause dyspnea following exercises. However, this is neither dangerous nor needs any intervention. Natural alternations in the breathing pattern can also lead to a dyspnea and among such alterations, breathing too deeply or breathing faster have been recognized as frequent occurrences. 

However, there can be serious causes for exercise-induced shortness of breath as well. For instance, abnormal heart rhythms and other heart abnormalities were also found among the research subjects. At the same time, some study subjects have shown abnormal vocal cord functions which leads to poor air entry into the respiratory system. 

Thus, experts argue that if treated properly, an asthmatic patient can have a normal exercise tolerance and could engage in exercise activities without any issues. However, even in such instances, it will not be possible for a person on asthma medication to go beyond his or her natural level of stamina and therefore will show signs of shortness of breath at some point during exercise as usual.

The study also points to the fact that it is important to develop stamina and exercise tolerance from the beginning or else they might end up well below their full exercise potential when they become adults.