From Elizabeth Quinn,
Your Guide to Sports Medicine.
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Exercise-induced asthma (EIA) is a form of asthma that some people have that is triggered by physical activity. Asthma causes the small airways of the lungs go into spasm or constrict. People with exercise-induced asthma typically experience asthma symptoms only when they exercise. Exercise-induced asthma is more common when the weather is cold and dry, or the level of pollution allergens in the air is high. It is also more common in those with poor physical conditioning, or respiratory infections.

Symptoms of exercise-induced asthma include:

• wheezing
• coughing
• shortness of breath
• chest tightness
• fatigue
• decreased athletic performance

Managing exercising-induced asthma
Exercise-induced asthma can be managed with certain medications. Inhaled bronchodilators are often prescribed and can be used prior to exercise in order to open up your airway.

What you can do
To manage exercise-induced asthma you need to know what triggers your asthma symptoms. For example, if your symptoms occur most often during strenuous activity in cold, dry air, you may need to exercise indoors during the winter or wear a scarf or facemask when you exercise outside. Other things you need to adjust your routine for include high pollution days, and high allergen days.

Increasing physical conditioning has been shown to decrease the incidence of asthma attacks. Another key to minimizing symptoms of exercise-induced asthma includes performing a thorough warm-up before workouts.

Exercise-induced asthma doesn’t have to keep you from physical activity. In fact exercise is an important part of your treatment plan. Many successful athletes have exercise-induced asthma that they control with a combination of medication and environmental control. You too can remain healthy and physically fit with proper education and use of medication for your asthma.