Asthma can be such a frightening and frustrating condition, it's no wonder people will try anything -- including a toxic drug -- to stop it. Researchers from China and the United States have discovered a potentially safer treatment: A natural, plant-based compound that produces about the same results as the corticosteroid drug prednisone.

The anti-asthma herbal medicine intervention (ASHMI), composed from three extracts, is a simplified version of a 14-herb medication used by physicians in China.

After a successful trial on mice, scientists studied the benefits of ASHMI versus a placebo and prednisone on 91 patients. Although both ASHMI and prednisone users had greater lung functioning, prednisone patients improved only slightly better than ASHMI patients. However, ASHMI didn't affect adrenal gland functioning, a big problem with prednisone.

If you're looking to reduce your dependence on any asthma drug, here's some simple lifestyle changes you can make:

• Boost your level of omega-3 fats by taking a high-quality fish or cod liver oil daily.
• Replace conventionally pasteurized milk in your daily diet with raw milk.
• Eat a healthy diet based on your body's unique nutritional type while reducing your intake of grains and sugars.
• Allergy skin testing -- via the Provocation Neutralization approach -- may be appropriate for extreme cases of asthma.

Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, Vol. 116, No. 3, September 2005: 517-524 Free Full Text Article

MSNBC October 17, 2005