Managing Asthma: Foods to Avoid and Self-Help Acupoints for Middle-of-the-Night Attacks

Asthma can be frightening but there are remedies that can alleviate symptoms when we need them most.

When experiencing an asthma attack, acupressure points can be used for self-help. Pixel-Shot/Shutterstock

Years ago, my elderly neighbor occasionally made loud wheezing sounds in the morning and at night that sounded downright frightening. After studying traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), I learned that his condition was known as asthma or shortness of breath caused by inflammation and mucous and often triggered by external conditions such as coldness and chill.

In Western medicine, asthma is considered a clinical syndrome characterized by an abnormally increased airway responsiveness to various stimuli, leading to symptoms such as shortness of breath, wheezing, and coughing.