Asthma medicine.

If you turn to conventional medicine for the answer to asthma, the "cure" may be worse than the condition, says Richard Firshein, D.O., an osteopathic physician in New York City.
"I believe that the approach of modern medicine to this disease has been woefully inadequate and misguided," Dr. Firshein says. "Asthma medications have often worsened the condition over the long term, since they treat the symptoms and not the problem, and few doctors have developed the kind of comprehensive treatment program that emphasizes healing and prevention."
Dr. Firshein's approach is a total program, and some aspects of it require medical tests and the supervision of a doctor. But many of his powerful asthma-controlling methods are alternative home remedies that almost anyone with asthma can use safely and effectively.

MAGNESIUM: Opens the Airways
"If I had to recommend one nutrient for people with asthma, it would be magnesium," says Dr. Firshein. The mineral acts as a natural bronchodilator, meaning that it relaxes and opens the bronchial tract, the airway to the lungs that becomes constricted during asthma attacks. He recommends taking a daily SOD-milligram supplement of either magnesium aspartate or magnesium citrate. You can take this supplement every day for 6 months, he suggests.

FATTY ACIDS: Reduce Lung Inflammation
The lungs become inflamed during asthma attacks, which makes it harder to breathe. To reduce inflammation naturally, turn to the omega3's found in fish and flaxseed oil. "Asthma involves both an acute inflammatory response and a secondary, late-phase inflammatory reaction that can occur up to 24 hours later and lasts for weeks," explains Dr. Firshein. "The late-phase response is now believed to be the cause of chronic asthma and tissue damage, and it can be halted by omega-3 fatty acids."

He recommends eating cold-water fish that are rich in omega-3 oils, such as salmon, tuna, and mackerel, three or four times a week. It's also a good idea to take six fish-oil capsules (the capsules are usually 1,000 milligrams each) a day.

If you don't eat fish, increase the dose to 12 fish-oil capsules daily. If you're a vegetarian or simply don't want to consume fish oil (many people don't like the fishy belch that sometimes occurs after swallowing the capsules), you can try flaxseed oil, which is also rich in omega-3's. Take 3 tablespoons a day. You can continue this regimen for up to a year, Dr. Firshein suggests.
There are a couple of cautions, however. About 10 percent of people with asthma (those who are sensitive to aspirin) get worse after taking fish oil. If you're aspirin-sensitive, take fish oil only with the supervision and approval of your physician. Also, if you have a high risk of stroke as well as asthma, talk to your doctor before taking fish oil, says Dr. Firshein, as fish oil may increase the risk of stroke in some people.

ANTIOXIDANTS: Fight Body-Damaging Free Radicals
Your body naturally produces unstable, cell-damaging molecules, called free radicals, and the level of free radicals rises when there's inflammation in the body. Since asthma is an inflammatory disease, Dr. Firshein theorizes that free radicals do much of the damage.

One way to control free radicals and limit their damage is to take supplements containing antioxidants such as beta-carotene and vitamins C and E. Dr. Firshein recommends taking daily supplements containing 400 international units of vitamin E, 3,000 milligrams of vitamin C (split into three doses), and 15 milligrams of beta-carotene. These supplements can be taken for a year, and you can talk to your doctor about reducing the doses depending on your individual progress.

NAC: Scoops Up Free Radicals
The amino acid n-acetylcysteine (NAC) is a powerful scavenger of free radicals, says Dr. Firshein. "It is also a building block for glutathione, one of the most powerful free radical quenchers available to the body," he says. NAC even helps prevent mucus from accumulating in the lungs. He recommends taking 500 milligrams of NAC twice a day.

QUERCETIN: Help for Allergies
Allergies often worsen asthma, says Dr. Firshein. If you have allergies, he recommends taking quercetin, a compound in the bioflavonoid family. "Quercetin has been scientifically well-documented for its antiallergic and antihistamine properties," he says. He advises taking 100 milligrams of quercetin three times a day. He recommends that you take quercetin for up to 6 months, especially during allergy season.

COLEUS: Relaxes Bronchial Muscles
The herb coleus has been used for centuries by practitioners of Ayurveda, the ancient system of natural healing from India, to relax the airways. Dr. Firshein recommends getting a product standardized for 18 percent forskolin, the active ingredient in coleus. Take 50 milligrams two or three times a day for up to a year, he says. Because coleus may enhance the effects of some asthma medications, you should discuss taking it with your doctor.
LICORICE: Similar to Steroids
In its pure form, licorice is anti-inflammatory, providing "a cortisol-like effect," says Dr. Firshein. (Cortisol is a drug commonly used to control the inflammation of asthma.) He advises using the deglycyrrhizinated form of licorice (labeled "DGL"), which won't raise blood pressure the way some forms of licorice do. Three times a day, add 20 to 40 drops of licorice tincture to a cup of hot water and let it cool to room temperature before drinking, he advises.

NETTLE: RelieffromAliergies
"1 use nettle for asthma pa_ients with sinus problems or nasal allergies," says Dr. Firshein. The herb contains a form of histamine that helps control allergic reactions. He recommends taking two 400-milligram capsules three times a day.
"You have to be careful to obtain a good brand of nettle, which, hopefully, has been properly harvested in the spring," he adds. "That's when the potent constituents of the stinging leaves are present."

BREATHING: To Stop an Attack
Concentrating on breathing properly can help stop an asthma attack. This works in several ways. By drawing more air into your lungs, relaxing your body, and controlling anxiety and panic, you can significantly reduce the severity of attacks. Here's what Dr. Firshein recommends.

Sit down as soon as an attack begins. Put one hand on your stomach, with the palm open and flat against your stomach. Use the thumb and forefinger of your other hand to feel for the pulse point on the opposite wrist. Let yourself relax. Next, synchronize your breathing with your heart rate. For every seven beats, breathe in. After nine beats, breathe out. Blowout through pursed lips until your air is gone. Let your body feel the rhythm of the breath and your heart. Continue to breathe this way for 10 to 15 minutes. This exercise is very calming and can help keep an attack from getting worse, Dr. Firshein says.

EXERCISE: Keep It Short and Sweet
People with asthma almost always benefit from regular aerobic exercise. But Dr. Firshein believes that "pulsed exercise"-brief, intense spurts-is the best approach. "I find that brief, intense cycles of exercise and relaxation are often beneficial for asthmatics, whose lung capacity
may not be great and who may be afraid to exercise for extended periods of time," he says. . First, use your peak flow meter (a device that measures breathing capacity) to check your numbers. Your doctor can help you decide what type and size is best for you and what numbers you should be looking for, Dr. Firshein says.

. Exercise for 5 minutes by walking, jogging, riding a stationary bike, jumping rope, or whatever aerobic exercise you prefer, then check your numbers again. Relax until they return to normal. This counts as one cycle.

. Then start another cycle. You can do as many cycles as you like in any exercise session, but aim for a minimum of four 5-minute cycles, says Dr. Firshein. That will give you the maximum aerobic benefit, he says. Some people with asthma may find that they need to use an inhaler before exercise. Others may need to take intal (Cromolyn) or tilade (Nedocromil), drugs that are used to control exercise-induced asthma, says Dr. Firshein. Check with your doctor to see what's best for you, he advises.

MEDICATIONS: Learn to Manage Them
Many people with asthma will eventually need to take steroids, either inhaled or taken orally, to control inflammation in the lungs. These medications are the so-called drugs of choice for treating asthma. But what a choice. "Steroids, taken long-term, may irreversibly harm, destroy, or disrupt virtually every organ in the body," says Dr. Firshein. As part of that damage, they rob the body of a variety of nutrients.

People who follow a lifestyle approach to treating asthma may be able to stop taking steroids entirely (with their doctors' approval, of course). Before that happens, however, you need to replace the nutrients that steroids steal. "I can't emphasize enough the importance of this step," says Dr. Firshein.

. Potassium: Take three 100-milligram capsules a day (with your doctor's supervision), and eat fruits that are high in potassium, such as bananas.

. Protein: Eat more fish, milk, and soy, and consider a daily drink made with protein powder, following the directions on the label.

. Calcium and magnesium: Take 500 milligrams of calcium citrate and 500 milligrams of magnesium citrate or magnesium aspartate a day.

You should also be sure to take some of the other supplements recommended in this chapter, particularly fish or flaxseed oil, vitamins C and E, and beta-carotene.

The Physician Who Healed Himself.
The doctor almost died of asthma. Richard Firshein, D.O., had just left the emergency room, where he had gone after his medicated spray failed to stop an asthma attack. The doctors had stabilized his condition and released him. He was standing on a corner outside the hospital when a bus stopped in front of him and spewed exhaust in his face. He took a breath-and stopped breathing.
Back in the emergency room, he was hooked to an IV full of steroids and other powerful drugs. His breathing was so limited that he wasn't even wheezing; there was virtually no air in his lungs.
Dr. Firshein, an osteopathic physician in New York City, survived that near-fatal asthma attack, but he almost became part of a scary statistic. The death rate from asthma has more than doubled since 1978.
After 20 years of using asthma drugs that failed to improve his condition, Dr. Firshein decided to treat his asthma himself-naturally and without excessive use of medications. It worked. He got his asthma under control using nutritional supplements, whole foods, herbs, exercise, and breathing and mind-body techniques, as well as by avoiding allergens that could trigger attacks. Then he began to offer his alternative program (some of which is described in this chapter) to his asthma patients, a group that now numbers in the thousands.

The Anti Asthma Diet.
"As an asthma sufferer myself, and as a physician who treats people with asthma, I've found that certain foods can have significant benefits," says Richard Firshein, D.O., an osteopathic physician in New York City. Here are his recommendations.

• Fish, which contains oil that reduces the airway inflammation of asthma.
• Onions, ginger, and garlic, which strengthen the immune system, and cayenne, which thins mucus.
• Fruits and vegetables, which contain a hefty dose of phytochemicals. These healing components in foods help control harmful free radical molecules in the body. Try to eat at least 6 servings of each every day.
• Sea vegetables, which deliver lots of protein and minerals. They include arame, dulse, hijiki, kombu, and nori and are available at health food stores, gourmet markets, and Asian groceries.
• Whole foods, which, unlike refined and processed foods, supply the best assortment of nutrients, complex sugars, starches, and fiber, says Dr. Firshein.
• Asian green tea, which contains substances that dilate the bronchial tubes. Avoid green tea if you're sensitive to molds, however.
• Magnesium-rich foods, such as tofu, wheat germ, Swiss chard, spinach, amaranth, beets, spinach, okra, and bean sprouts. Magnesi,um relaxes the bronchial tubes.
• Foods high in vitamin C and betacarotene, such as dark green, leafy vegetables; cantaloupe; and squash. These two vitamins help fight inflammation.
• Healthy condiments, such as gomasio (roasted sesame seeds and sea salt), lemon juice, fresh spices, Dijon mustard, and low-sodium, preservative-free tamari, which is similar to soy sauce. High-fat, high-salt condiments are unhealthy for people with asthma (and everybody else!).