Millions of asthma patients across the world have their original suffering from asthma aggravated and increased by the insidious development of iatrogenic diseases.

[iatrogenic \ahy-a-truh-JEN-ik\, adjective:
A malady induced inadvertently by a physician or surgeon or by medical treatment or diagnostic procedures. Iatrogenic stems from the Greek iatros, physician.]

Long term use of many asthma drugs may be responsible for any of the following conditions:

Adrenal suppression: Symptoms: weight loss, vomiting, irritability, depression, dehydration, hypotension, diarrhea, muscle fatigue, or joint pain. Bronchospasm: Tightening of the airways akin to an asthma attack. Candidiasis: A fungal growth that can affect gut, mouth and urinary tract.  Cataracts : Blurred vision due to clouding of the lenses of the eyes. Glaucoma: Increased intra ocular pressure that can lead to blindness. Growth retardation: Mainly a concern for parents of growing children. Osteoporosis: Loss of bone density with possible collapse of bones. Palpitations: Noticable heart beats giving anxiety & distress. Tachycardia: Rapid heart beats, with chest pain & rapid breathing.
* These are all officially published reported adverse effects of the use of common asthma drugs.

A recently published New York Times article HERE highlighted this terrible dilemma of a patient having to choose between either repeated hospital emergency admissions from asthma attacks without asthma medication or progressively going blind with asthma medication . Happily this patient learned how to reduce his asthma medication safely and escape this terrifying dilemma. The solution? The Buteyko Method.

There is good evidence that the treatment of asthma with modern drugs may manage the symptoms but actually worsens the patient’s condition. Reliever medication increases hyperventilation (an underlying problem for all asthma sufferers) and preventer corticosteroids suppress the immune system increasing the risk of chest infections and colds  (common triggers for many asthma patients).

Does it not therefore make good clinical sense to help the asthma patient take more active control of their condition in order to reduce the need for medication? This is the simple plea of many Buteyko Practitioners to the medical profession.