Asthma is a chronic respiratory disease that occurs in people whose airways become inflamed in response to various triggers or behaviors. The inflamed airways become swollen and narrow, and the muscles around them tighten, causing a bronchospasm.
An asthmatic can give up cigarettes, stay away from pollen and dust, regularly use a trusted inhaler, and even run, cycle, and swim. But in the end, all these good habits might not matter as much as they were supposed to.
At least not at night, because according to a group of American doctors and scientists, once the sun goes down, the body’s natural circadian rhythms “have an impact on asthma severity independent of behavioral and environmental factors.”
A team from Harvard Medical School, the University of California, San Diego, Oregon Health & Science University, and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston assessed variations in severity in 17 patients over three weeks.
They did this both at home and “in carefully controlled laboratory experiments that dissociated circadian effects from environmental and behavioral effects.”
Their findings, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, demonstrated “the potential for improving therapeutic strategies by taking into account the internal biological time of individuals.”
According to U.S. government scientists, circadian rhythms are “physical, mental and behavioral changes over a 24-hour cycle” and respond “primarily to light and dark, internally driven cycles” that “rise and fall” over each day, helping a person fall asleep at night and wake up in the morning, as well as regulate their eating habits and hormones.
According to the Harvard-led researchers, these rhythms are behind what they say has been recognized about asthma “for centuries”: “that severity follows a daily rhythm, with symptoms worsening at night.”
More about asthma
Asthma can begin at any age, but children are more likely to develop it at age 10. They are at greater risk if they have a family history of asthma (atopic or allergic parents), have suffered from respiratory infections, live in environments with environmental pollution, or their parents were exposed to tobacco smoke.
For treatment, experts recommend inhaled corticosteroids, which reach the treated area of the respiratory tract directly, making them more effective and easier to use, with just three steps: inhale, open and close. The dose, prescribed by the doctor, varies according to the patient’s symptoms.
Generally, when the person does not control the disease, abandons treatment, and asthma attacks occur, they resort to the use of oral or injected steroids, which increase the risk of adverse effects such as obesity, increased sugar, high blood pressure, cataracts, hirsutism, and osteoporosis.
In addition to good adherence to treatment and the correct use of inhalers, symptoms are best controlled by adopting a healthy lifestyle, which includes maintaining a healthy weight, eating a balanced diet, and exercising.