Living with asthma

Optimizing your child’s asthma management can help them lead a normal, healthy life. Learn about asthma triggers, exercising with asthma, and asthma management at school.

Key points

Asthma triggers vary from child to child. Common triggers include viral infections, irritants such as cigarette smoke and air pollution, allergens such as pet dander and pollen, and certain medicines.
Exercise can make some children's asthma worse, but taking regular asthma controller medicines and other precautions can help lessen these symptoms.
It is important to provide your child's school with your child's asthma action plan so the staff can help in the case of an asthma attack.
Tools such as an asthma action plan and an asthma diary can help you effectively monitor and manage your child’s asthma symptoms.

Introduction

More information

Pet dander, dust mites, infections, cigarette smoke, air pollution, pollens and moulds

What are asthma triggers?

Triggers are things that make your child’s asthma worse. Your child has a set of asthma triggers that may be different from other children. It is important to know what your child’s asthma triggers are and try to remove or reduce exposure to them.

Infections such as colds and flu

Viral infections such as colds and flu are common asthma triggers. By optimizing your child’s asthma management when they are well, you can help your child have fewer asthma symptoms when they do get a cold or the flu.

To help protect your child:

Try to keep your child away from people who have a cold or the flu.
Make sure your child and your family members wash their hands often.
Consider having your child wear a mask to school during the winter, or when other children in their class have symptoms of a viral infection.
Have your child get their flu shot annually, and make sure they are up to date on routine vaccinations.

Irritants

Irritants are things that can trigger symptoms for anyone with asthma. Some examples of irritants and ways to help your child avoid them are outlined below.

Cigarette smoke

Children’s asthma is frequently triggered by second-hand smoke. To protect your child from cigarette smoke:

If you smoke, you should quit.
Do not smoke in the house or the car. Ask anyone who smokes to smoke outdoors.
Remember that cigarette smoke stays on clothes. If a person who has been near cigarette smoke is close to your child, this can make your child’s asthma worse.

Wood and oil smoke

Smoke from wood stoves or campfires are also irritants that may trigger your child’s asthma symptoms. Try to avoid having your child breathe in smoke from fireplaces, wood stoves, campfires, and oil heaters.

Air pollution

Air pollution is highest during hot and humid days in the summer. Smoke from wildfires also significantly impacts air quality. To help protect your child from air pollution:

Follow the air quality index on TV or online.
When air quality outside is poor, try to stay indoors where air conditioning and/or air filtering is available.
Keep the windows closed at home and in the car when the air quality is poor.

Cold air

Your child’s asthma may get worse if there is a sudden change in temperature. If this is a pattern you see for your child, consider the following to reduce the chances that cold air may trigger asthma symptoms:

Have your child wear a scarf that covers their nose and mouth when going outside in cold weather.
Let your child exercise or play indoors on cold days (including at school recess).

Chemical fumes and strong odours

Some strong scents and chemical fumes (e.g., cleaning products including bleach, paints and pain strippers, perfumes) can irritate your child’s airway. Try to avoid your child being exposed to these irritants.

Allergens

Allergens are things that can trigger asthma symptoms if your child is allergic to them. Not every child with asthma has allergies, but allergens can cause an immune system response that leads to inflammation and narrowing in the airways. If your child does have allergies, avoiding their specific allergen triggers can help prevent asthma flare-ups. Some examples of allergens and ways to help your child avoid them are outlined below.

Pet dander

If you are a pet owner and your child is allergic to pets, the best way to avoid asthma episodes is—unfortunately—to find another home for your pets. It is very important to clean your house thoroughly because traces of pets can stay in living areas for a long time. You may need to clean furniture, carpets, children’s stuffed toys, and the heating and cooling systems.

Dust mites

Dust mites are microscopic bugs that feed on dead skin cells. Children who have dust allergies are actually allergic to dust mites. To help manage your child’s dust mite allergy:

Wash all your linens in hot water every week.
Cover your child’s mattress, box spring and pillows with allergen-proof covers.
Remove carpets, rugs, and heavy curtains from your child’s bedroom and, if possible, from the rest of the house.
Keep the humidity level in the house below 50%. You can use a dehumidifier in damp areas.

Pollen

Pollen comes from trees, grasses, and weeds. Pollen particles can travel for miles by wind and are most problematic during the spring and warm-weather months. If your child is allergic to pollens:

Watch for the pollen count reports on TV or online.
Close the windows at home and in the car on days when the pollen count is high. Use an air conditioner if needed and change the filter regularly.
Dry your child’s laundry using a clothes dryer instead of hanging clothes and sheets outside.

Mould

Mould grows all year round in areas that are damp, such as basements and bathrooms. Mould particles can travel in the air to anywhere in the home. To help keep your house free of mould:

Remove visible mold with soap/detergent and water (small areas) or a fungicide (large areas).
Use a dehumidifier in damp areas of your home, such as the basement. Try to keep humidity below 50%.
Open the window or use a bathroom fan after showers.
Fix water leaks in the roof or plumbing immediately.

Foods

Food allergies do not usually cause asthma symptoms, but children with food allergies are more likely to develop asthma. Children with food allergies may also be more likely to have severe asthma, so it is very important to keep asthma under good control if your child has food allergies.

If you suspect that your child is allergic to a certain food, ask your child’s health-care provider for a referral to an allergist.

Medicine

Certain medicines, like ASA (acetylsalicylic acid or Aspirin) and ibuprofen, can cause asthma symptoms in some children with asthma.

If your child is sensitive to these medicines, talk to a member of your child’s health-care team.

Helping your child

Asthma and exercise

Minimizing asthma symptoms during exercise

Asthma should not stop your child from exercising. All children should play and stay active. However, exercise can make some children’s asthma worse. By making sure that your child is taking their regular asthma controller medicines, you can help control your child’s asthma symptoms and help them exercise without asthma symptoms. Here are some adjustments that may help minimize your child’s asthma symptoms during exercise:

Make sure your child warms up before and cools off after exercising.
Have your child wear a scarf to cover their nose and mouth when exercising outdoors in cold weather.
Avoid exercising outdoors when it is very hot or humid, or when the air pollution or pollen index is high.
If your child has asthma symptoms during exercise, have them exercise for shorter periods, and take breaks as needed.

Your child’s health-care provider may recommend that they take reliever medicine 15 to 20 minutes before exercising. This can help prevent asthma symptoms.

Remember your child’s airway may be swollen and inflamed after an asthma flare-up. Give your child time to return to normal before starting exercise again.

If your child has severe asthma symptoms such as coughing and wheezing during exercise, they should stop exercising and follow their asthma action plan.

Asthma in school or daycare

If your child has well-controlled asthma, they should be able to go to school or attend daycare regularly. It is important to remember that your child’s asthma can be triggered while at school. By communicating with the school and your child’s teachers, you can help make sure your child’s asthma is managed effectively.

Communication with your child’s teacher and school or daycare

It is very important to tell your child’s teachers and the school or daycare about your child’s asthma. The school or daycare should have a copy of your child’s asthma action plan and a student asthma management form. Your child’s teachers should know how to help your child with their reliever medicine if they have an asthma episode.

Let the school or daycare know if there are any changes to your child’s health, medicine, or asthma action plan.

Asthma medicines in school or daycare

Staff should be able to follow your child’s asthma action plan and give your child asthma reliever medicine in the case of an asthma attack or worsening asthma symptoms.

Give the school or daycare your child’s asthma medicines and explain how to use them properly. Make sure the instructions are included. Make sure each medicine is well labelled with:

your child’s name
the name of the medicine
the number of doses needed
the phone number for your child’s health-care providers

Tell the staff to store the medicines in a cool, dry place where other students cannot access them.

When your child is ready to carry their own asthma medicine

Older children may be able to carry their own medicines and take them if needed. Your child should follow the school’s rules about this. Ask the school if there are forms that need to be filled out to permit your child to carry their own medicine. You may need to give the school a copy of your child’s prescription.

Give the school a set of your child’s medicines so there is always a backup available for your child.

You, your child, their health-care provider, and the school should work together to decide if your child is ready to carry their own medicine. These are some questions you can think about when making the decision:

Can your child recognize the warning signs that they are going to have an asthma episode?
Does your child know how to properly use their medicine?
Do you know the school’s rules about using medicine?
Can you make sure your child always has their medicine with them, and that it is refilled when needed?
Are school staff, including teachers, coaches, and bus drivers, trained to handle asthma emergencies?

Recognizing asthma warning signs in school

Give your child’s teachers a list of your child’s asthma warning signs so they understand when to give reliever medicine and when to call 911.

Make sure your child’s teachers know who to contact in case of an emergency. Give them alternative contact numbers. Be sure to let these contact persons know what to do in an emergency situation.

Management tools to help control your child’s asthma

Asthma action plan

An asthma action plan is something you develop with your child’s health-care provider. The action plan tells you what to do if your child is well, has mild symptoms or has severe worsening. Remember that asthma symptoms may change over time. Have your child see their health-care provider regularly to monitor their asthma and adjust their action plan as needed.

Asthma diary

An asthma diary is a calendar to record your child’s asthma symptoms. Recording your child’s asthma symptoms with the diary can help you and your child’s health-care provider see the patterns in your child’s asthma. This can help your child’s health-care provider adjust your child’s asthma medicine and gain better control of their asthma symptoms.

Resources

Last updated: March 20th 2024

Living with asthma

Key points