Buteyko method applied to asthmatic children

Curated by Doctor Pasquale Fusco

Asthma is becoming an increasingly widespread disease. In the last 10 years the number of asthmatics in the world has doubled, and unfortunately children are not exempt from this problem, even in countries where medical research is highly developed.
Dr. Buteyko, a Russian doctor, identified the cause of "asthma in chronic hyperventilation, that is, in systematically breathing more than necessary, and we know from our experience every day that a fright or stress makes us breathe, increasing our breathing even more". hyperventilation An asthma attack causes all asthmatics, and even more so in a child, a state of anxiety and fear that only increase the problem.
It is a common belief that the more we breathe, the more oxygen our body has available; instead this is not the case, because by hyperventilating large quantities of carbon dioxide are eliminated and this fact causes a decrease in the amount of oxygen available to the cells of our body, those of the brain, of the various organs, of the muscles, because the ability to use oxygen depends on the amount of carbon dioxide present in the blood. In fact, due to the phenomenon known as the Bohr effect, the ability of hemoglobin to release the oxygen it carries decreases as the amount of carbon dioxide decreases, and the more you breathe, the more the CO2 level decreases.
Dr. Buteyko's exercises, in addition to solving the problem of hyperventilation, thus eliminating the problem of root asthma, also provide the possibility of controlling an asthma attack with breathing techniques alone, without having to take any medication, giving so much relief to the anxious state in which an asthmatic lives; this aspect is even more important in a child, who sometimes does not remember where he has put the bronchodilator spray or perhaps he has forgotten it at home or does not know how to use it well.
The method of Dr. Buteyko is also applicable to children over 3-4 years old: it is sufficient that the child has reached the ability to listen and perform what is asked of him, and the results will not be long in coming. In fact, children react to treatment faster than adults and soon get excellent results.
The little ones must always be followed and encouraged by their parents in the execution of the exercises, while the older ones after a first period can also practice alone, but always under the supervision of their parents.
The technique used for children is different from that used for adults, not only because it is masked by the game, but also because of the different type of reactivity that a child's body generally has.
In the experiments carried out in the former Soviet Union and in Australia, all asthmatic children responded positively to the method, and asthma attacks, rhinitis and allergic colds disappeared or greatly decreased: in one week 83% of children showed significant improvements. with great reduction in the use of drugs, while 17% had minor improvements.
Not breathing through the nose is one of the main problems of asthmatic children: breathing with the mouth, in fact, the air that is inhaled is not heated, humidified and filtered as happens instead by breathing through the nose, and moreover a greater quantity is inhaled. of air, increasing hyperventilation. The mucus in the respiratory tract (colds, blocked nose) is a defense of the body against the loss of CO2, in fact it will be seen that by applying the method, the nose will be freer and the conditions of asthma will improve .