Eat fruits to keep from coughing, wheezing

FRUITFUL: Asthma, which is a chronic swelling of the airways, may be managed by eating enough fruits.

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Suhasini Haidar

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New Delhi: Thirteen-year-old Prateekshit loves to play, but not for more than 15 minutes, for after that had has to rest to catch his breath. Or else, rely on his best friend -- his inhaler.

Prateekshit has been suffering from asthma for the last nine years now and it hasn't been easy for him.

While medication has helped, his mother Aparajita says the diet regimen the teenager follows has also helped him control his condition.

"I give him fresh fruits and vegetables. I avoid foods that contain preservatives and also canned food," says she.

Asthma, which is a chronic swelling of the airways, may be managed by eating enough fruits and vegetables -- so stays a study in the journal Chest, which has found that teens with the lowest intake of fruit, vitamins C and E, and omega-3 fatty acids had lower lung function and higher reports of respiratory symptoms such as cough and wheezing.

Says a Pulmonologist at Max HealthCare, Dr Nevin Kishore, "A diet rich in minerals, vitamins and anti-oxidants helps boost immunity and re-directs the immunity in the right direction."

While the study is another in line of many studies, which say a good diet goes a long way in managing ashtma, it gives one another reason to tuck in to those fresh fruits.