Most children with asthma have symptoms before age 5. But it’s sometimes hard for parents, and even doctors, to recognize asthma symptoms in very young children. Infants, toddlers and preschoolers have small and narrow airways in their lungs. Head and chest colds and other illnesses can inflame the lung airways, making them even smaller and more irritated. If this happens a lot, your child may have asthma.
The symptoms of asthma can range from a nagging cough that lingers for days or weeks to sudden and scary breathing emergencies. Common asthma symptoms include:
Your child might have only one of these symptoms, or most of them. You may think it’s just a cold or bronchitis. But, if the symptoms keep coming back, that’s a clue that your child might have asthma.
The symptoms also might get worse when your child is around “asthma triggers.”