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Is it possible something like asthma is an immuniological response to a lack of strenuous activity to some extent? (lemmy.world)

submitted 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) by cheese_greater@lemmy.world to c/asklemmy@lemmy.ml

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Does asthma seemingly "worsen" with a lack of "sufficiently strenuous and or active activity"?

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[–] AmbitiousProcess@piefed.social 8 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) (1 children)

Maybe, but it seems more like it's likely due to genetics, and exposure (or lack of exposure) to given environmental compounds, whether it be those that cause asthma directly, or those that could cause the body to develop resistance to developing asthma.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asthma#Causes

However, a lack of strenuous activity could be correlated with obesity, from which:

There is a correlation between obesity and the risk of asthma, with both having increased in recent years. Several factors may be at play, including decreased respiratory function due to a buildup of fat and the fact that adipose tissue leads to a pro-inflammatory state

[–] cheese_greater@lemmy.world 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Does a quadraplegic have a less active or potent immune system as a consequence of their condition relative to a walking person?

[–] AmbitiousProcess@piefed.social 6 points 1 month ago

That would depend on the way in which the individual became quadriplegic, any treatment they're receiving, and what parts of their body are affected by it.

It seems there's very cursory research showing some spinal injuries can increase your likelihood of developing conditions like pneumonia, and your risk of infection from most bacteria, but it doesn't seem to be true in all cases, nor has there been a lot of research as to if it persists forever, the exact mechanism by which it happens, or to what degree it can impair the immune system.

That likely isn't very relevant to the original question of asthma, though, unless the quadriplegic individual...

Acquired any of a very small selection of respiratory viruses as a young child
Received many antibiotics as a young child
Became quadriplegic later in life and were exposed to a large quantity of non-pathogenic bacteria/viruses
Exposed very little exposure early in life to non-pathogenic bacteria/viruses (e.g. from farms, pets, general non-sterile environments)

...since those are the primary mechanisms by which any form of immune reaction could be impacting the likelihood of asthma developing and/or getting worse/better.