I've had asthma since I was a baby, and am now on a 250 dosage of Advair. It's my MIRACLE MEDICINE. When I don't take it I have an asthma attack everyday... just from living (not even with excersize). People have told me that if I excersize rigorously everyday, it will strengthen my lungs and cure me of my asthma. Should I keep running with the hope that I'll be cured in a year or more, even if I have a mild attack at the end of each excersize period?

Ive ran with my asthma, its really tough. Eventually, your lungs will get stronger and your asthma may improve. As for a cure, I doubt it. The only possible way that I could think that would work is that your oxygen consumption increases along with allergens. More allergens would make your body more used to them. Kinda like allergy shots. But I still doubt it.

Asthma cannot be cured. It is a "condition" that you have in your lungs. It doesn't go away.

Doctors used to treat the symptoms (asthma attacks) and give albuteral, etc. when you had an attack. In the 90's, the medical community changed its thinking. Now they feel that you should treat the underlying problem (inflammation and mucous) so that you don't have asthma attacks. That could very well mean meds every day for your whole life.

Go to your library and check out some of the newer books on asthma; books written in 2000 and later. You can get LOTS of answers to your questions.

Great reply talking about treating the underlying cause rather than the symptoms. Advair is a combination of fluticasone (brand name Flovent, which is a corticosteroid) and salmeterol (brand name Serevent, which is a long acting bronchodilator that works the same way as albuterol). Corticosteroids reduce inflammation of the airways, to make breathing easier. Bronchodilators work to relax the muscles that tighten up and cause difficulty breathing. Most people get great relief from asthma on Advair, while others dont. Exercise is NOT a cure for asthma but is good for asthmatics, as long as they are controlled. Do not push yourself too far, but do exercise moderately as tolerated.

People with asthma are often afraid to exercise. This means that they lose cardiovascular tuning and tone and become "out of shape" and makes their asthma seem worse.

Making sure to exercise PROPERLY (not excessively! More is not necessarily better!) can often improve lung function simply by making you healthier, making your body use the oxygen that you DO get more effectively, in calming down the panic that symptoms of an asthma attack often bring, that kind of thing.

Just remember to take a bronchodilator 15 mins before you start to exercise, and go easy -- if you start feeling the symptoms of asthma, don't continue at that pace. Listen to your body, and slow down.

I walk on a treadmill for an hour a day at 3 mph, have for years and still do, even though I was diagnosed with asthma last year (I'm 50). When it was first being brought under control, I had a hell of a time on the treadmill so I just stopped it for a few months until I was breathing normally again (and yes plm, we DO breathe just like a normal person when there's no problems). Anyway, I have found that if I'm not feeling really 'great' beforehand, after I've been walking for about 20 minutes or so, my breathing becomes more even and normal. Have no idea why, and I don't use any kind of an inahler beforehand. In fact, I don't use anything but Advair. But I find that walking on the treadmill actually makes me feel better than before I got on it, I can actually feel my body 'regulating' itself, for lack of a better word. No, it won't cure asthma, but for me it certainly helps normalize my breathing.