Islets of Hope disorders associated with diabetes

Article disclaimer

Main article source (edited for content)  Wikipedia.com

Did you know?

... that ancient Greek and Chinese doctors knew about asthma?

... that 100 million people in the world have asthma?

... that attack happens when tubes carrying oxygen to lungs get narrow and inflamed which causes difficulty in breathing?

... that dust and cold air can trigger the airways to tighten too?

Skinny Chocolate By Phyllis Magida and Barbara Grunes (Surrey Books)

Cocoa Sponge Drops (from Skinny Chocolate)

Per 2 cookie serving: 18 calories, .1 grams fat, trace of cholesterol, 14 milligrams sodium, .5 grams protein, 4 grams carbohydrates ... Find full recipe in our online
February Newsletter

Read our food nutrition scale review

                       main "Disorders" page
Disorders associated with diabetes

Asthma: broncoconstriction and inflammation

Bronchoconstriction
Bronchial inflammation

Bronchoconstriction

In essence, asthma is the result of an abnormal immune response in the bronchial airways. The airways of asthmatics are “hypersensitive” to certain triggers, also known as stimuli (see below). In response to exposure to these triggers, the bronchi (large airways) contract into spasm (an “asthma attack”). Inflammation soon follows, leading to a further narrowing of the airways and excessive mucus production, which leads to coughing and other breathing difficulties.

There are seven categories of stimuli:

• allergens, typically inhaled, which include waste from common household insects, such as the house dust mite and cockroach, grass pollen, mould spores and pet epithelial cells;
• medications, including aspirin^[6] and β-adrenergic antagonists (beta blockers);
• air pollution, such as ozone, nitrogen dioxide, and sulfur dioxide, which is thought to be one of the major reasons for the high prevalence of asthma in urban areas;
• various industrial compounds and other chemicals, notably sulfites; chlorinated swimming pools generate chloramines—monochloramine (NH₂Cl), dichloramine (NHCl₂) and trichloramine (NCl₃)—in the air around them, which are known to induce asthma;^[7]
• early childhood infections, especially viral respiratory infections;
• exercise, the effects of which differ somewhat from those of the other triggers; and
• emotional stress, which is poorly understood as a trigger.  

Bronchial inflammation

The mechanisms behind allergic asthma—i.e., asthma resulting from an immune response to inhaled allergens—are the best understood of the causal factors. In both asthmatics and non-asthmatics, inhaled allergens that find their way to the inner airways are ingested by a type of cell known as antigen presenting cells, or APCs. APCs then “present” pieces of the allergen to other immune system cells. In most people, these other immune cells (T_H0 cells) “check” and usually ignore the allergen molecules. In asthmatics, however, these cells transform into a different type of cell (T_H2), for reasons that are not well understood. The resultant T_H2 cells activate an important arm of the immune system, known as the humoral immune system. The humoral immune system produces antibodies against the inhaled allergen. Later, when an asthmatic inhales the same allergen, these antibodies “recognize” it and activate a humoral response. Inflammation results: chemicals are produced that cause the airways to constrict and release more mucus, and the cell-mediated arm of the immune system is activated. The inflammatory response is responsible for the clinical manifestations of an asthma attack. The following section describes this complex series of events in more detail.  

Page  1  2  3  4  5  6     Previous    Next

| Contact Us  |  About IOH  |  Our Mission  |  Elizabeth's Story  |  About the Founder  |  Join IOH  |  How To Help  |  Advertise  |  Privacy Statement  |  Site Index  |

Page Updated 09/01/2006