Asthma Symptoms in the Obese May Be Caused By Weight, Not Inflammation

(October 24, 2006)

Pulmonary researchers at the University at Buffalo have created asthma-like symptoms in non-asthmatic volunteers by decreasing their lung volume through simulated obesity. The study results suggest that the airway hyperresponsiveness seen in obese patients, which often leads to a diagnosis of asthma, may be treated more successfully through weight reduction than by asthma medication.