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The management steps to be taken at this stage for preventing an attack essentially invlolve making the child rest and relax; drink liquids, preferably warm liquids; and take asthma medicines as prescribed.
Rest and Relaxation. Children should be made to rest at the first recognizable sign of asthma.This means making them sit down and relax. Resting reduces the load on the lungs. Helping the children to relax implies making them as comfortable as possible and keeping them that way for a while.
Diaphragmatic or Belly Breathing. Diaphragmatic breathing or belly breathing helps in relaxing as well as making the entire lungs work, rather than just the upper parts. Belly breathing is a form of breathing which uses the diaphragm to help push air into the lungs. The following guidelines can help the child learn the technique of diaphragmatic breathing.
• Make the child lie on the floor, with his knees bent, while keeping his feet flat on the floor.
• Place one hand on the chest, and the other on the stomach.
• Instruct the child to breathe in through the nose and into the stomach, without inflating his chest.
• The stomach should bloat up like a ball.
• Ask him then to blow the air out through his mouth, with lips pursed, with one hand pressing the stomach in, pushing the air out, till his stomach is flat.
Breathing this way makes the child feel better and less tired. It can be practised twice a day.
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Another potential cause of diarrhoea is the natural laxative effect of some fruits. Prunes, rhubarb and figs are well known for such properties, but other fruits can have similar, if milder, effects, and so can avocado pears. Eating too much of foods such as these may produce diarrhoea in the susceptible person. Eating beans, lentils, chickpeas or other legumes can also cause problems, especially if they have not been properly cooked. Shellfish are another common cause of diarrhoea – they quite often contain toxins that are not destroyed by cooking.

These are common reactions to food, or to food contaminants, which anyone might have. In food intolerance, there is a more specific reaction to one or more foods, which do not produce diarrhoea in most people. The sort of diarrhoea caused by food intolerance is likely to be fairly mild, although with occasional more acute attacks, perhaps in reponse to a change in diet, or to stress. There might also be periods when the bowel reverts to normal function for a while, or brief episodes of constipation. Opinions vary, but some doctors would classify this sort of chronic diarrhoea, without any pain, as a form of irritable bowel syndrome. It is therefore dealt with below, under that heading.

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