Children with Asthma: Tips for Parents
Your Child's Asthma Video
The best treatment for asthma is prevention. Our asthma videos can help you learn the skills you need to manage your child's asthma at home so they can lead an active, healthy life. Watch the Videos
A child's asthma flare-up can be a frightening experience for both you and your child. But there are many steps you can take to avoid asthma attacks in your child.
The following suggestions can help you take control of your child's asthma:
- Learn all about childhood asthma.
- Know the names and proper use of your child's medications, and teach them to your child at as early an age as possible.
- If your child attends school or day care, make sure teachers and other appropriate staff know what medications he or she must take.
- If medication side effects interfere with your child's school performance or behavior, talk with your physician about changing his or her asthma action plan.
- Steroid inhalers and growth: Although there was some concern in the past that using inhaled corticosteroids might interfere with children's normal growth and development, most experts now agree that while some minor temporary growth inhibition may occur, final adult height is not affected. Watch the Videos
- Kids and inhalers (puffers). Most children are able to use a metered-dose inhaler (MDI) when they are 4 to 6 years old. Read some tips on using an MDI with a mask spacer.
- When kids can't puff. Nebulizers are commonly used to deliver asthma medication to very young children. Learn how to use a nebulizer correctly.
- Quit smoking—for your kids' sake. Children of smokers are more likely to experience asthma flare-ups and have more severe cases of asthma. Don't let others smoke in your home.
- Exercise-induced asthma is common in children with asthma, but there are steps you can take to help your child stay fully active.
- Children with asthma should get a flu shot each year. (Colds and flu can trigger your child's asthma.)
- For more help managing childhood asthma, check out our health classes.
Read how one mother got her son's asthma under control after a surprise diagnosis.