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Ask the Educator - Does Exercise Help Asthma?

October 2009

Question: If I exercise every day and eat healthy, will my asthma get better over time? I figure that doing cardiovascular exercises would strengthen my lungs and make my asthma less severe over time.

Answer: Exercise is very beneficial for everyone, however there are no studies that specifically show that exercising can reduce asthma symptoms over time. Exercise can improve the efficiency of the heart and lungs and has a lot of other tremendous benefits. It is good for the heart, body and muscles and can also relieve stress and improve feelings of well being.

Learning what your asthma triggers are and avoiding them as well as possible can help reduce symptoms. Learn more about asthma and exercise here: http://teenasthma.ca/sportsexercise.jsp.

When asthma is well-controlled, you should usually be able to exercise normally. If you can’t, see your doctor since you may need a change to your asthma medications or further advice on avoiding your triggers.

Eating healthy foods is of course very important but not usually related specifically to asthma unless you have food allergies or intolerances that you should be avoiding. Canada’s food guide has excellent nutritional advice: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/food-guide-aliment/index-eng.php .

If you have any further questions, please call The Lung Association’s Asthma Action Helpline at 1-888-344-LUNG (5864).

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