Tips for Taming Cold Weather Asthma

Anyone with asthma—especially those with severe asthma—knows that winter can play havoc with your lungs. Cold, dry air, as well as moving from warm inside temperatures to colder outside conditions can aggravate already sensitive airways and lead to coughing, wheezing, and shortness of breath. In addition, cold air causes the nasal cavity and lungs to produce more mucus, which can lead to coughing, which can further irritate airways, and round and round the asthma goes.

Fortunately, there are several things you can do to reduce your risk of winter asthma flare-ups. Here’s where to start:

Bundle up: When venturing outdoors, dress warmly. This means a coat, hat, scarf, and gloves. Wrap your scarf around your nose and mouth to warm the air you inhale.

Breathe through your nose, not your mouth: Breathing through your nose keeps cold air from flooding into your lungs as it does when you breath in through your mouth. Air that passes through your nasal cavity warms as it moves towards your lungs, reducing the chance it will cause irritation.

When indoors, use a humidifier: Indoor heating can lead to dry air which can irritate your lungs. Using a humidifier can help provided it isn’t run to the point where the air becomes humid. In addition, humidifiers do need to be cleaned thoroughly and regularly with the proper cleaning agents to avoid releasing fungi or bacteria into the air.

Limit outdoor exercise: If possible, take your fitness indoors during the coldest months.

Keep your heating system clean: Clean and replace filters in your heating system at the start of every season.  

Check in with your doctor: If cold weather has caused you issues before, check in with your doctor to make sure you have the most appropriate inhalers and a plan for how and when to use them.

 Norr Hashem, DO,  is a family medicine physician at SVMC Pownal Campus.