The list is NOT all-inclusive and you should get your doctor's advice if you wonder whether you are physically and psychologically capable of taking a wilderness whitewater raft trip. We recommend that you do not go rafting if you have severe asthma. If you decide to go despite this warning, you should bring a minimum of two full relief inhalers. You should keep one on your person and give the other to your guide. Normally, when you inhale, your chest wall expands, increasing lung volume and breathing capacity.
Air flows freely through the airways.
With asthma, airways become partially obstructed and trap air in the lungs. Asthma is an inflammatory disease and airway constriction, swelling, and damage to the lining of the airways are often the result of this inflammation. More than 14 million Americans have asthma and nearly 6,000 die from it each year. Some medications for high blood pressure, glaucoma, migraine headache, heart, thyroid or liver conditions can also aggravate an asthmatic condition. Beta-blockers can cause airway restriction.