(HealthDay News) -- The inhaled steroids that are often used to treat asthma don't work as well in the overweight or obese, new research shows.

In fact, the treatments are 40 percent less effective in these patients than in those of a healthy weight, said study author Dr. E. Rand Sutherland, an associate professor of medicine at National Jewish Health in Denver.

"The combination of obesity and asthma appears to do something to limit the pathways by which steroids reduce inflammation," he said.

By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, Sept. 18 (HealthDay News) -- Children given acetaminophen during the first year of life to reduce fever are more likely to develop asthma later on, a new study finds.

These children are also more likely to develop rhinoconjunctivitis and eczema when they reach age 6 to 7, according to the report in the Sept. 20 issue of The Lancet.

Sept. 18 (HealthDay News) -- Increasing use of folic acid and other dietary supplements by women may be one reason why the prevalence of asthma has nearly doubled in the past 25 years, U.S. researchers are suggesting.

They found that a pregnant woman's diet can cause gene regulation (epigenetic) changes that increase an offspring's risk of developing allergic asthma.

Sept. 18 (HealthDay News) -- Increasing use of folic acid and other dietary supplements by women may be one reason why the prevalence of asthma has nearly doubled in the past 25 years, U.S. researchers are suggesting.

They found that a pregnant woman's diet can cause gene regulation (epigenetic) changes that increase an offspring's risk of developing allergic asthma.

WEDNESDAY, Sept. 17 (HealthDay News) -- Children who attended a daycare center as infants are 35 percent less likely than their peers to have asthma symptoms by age 5, according to new research.

The British study, published in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, found those enrolled between age 6 months and 12 months were most likely not to develop the symptoms, experiencing a 75 percent reduction in asthma risk.

(HealthDay News) -- Deep breathing techniques are a great way to fight stress and anxiety, and help you relax.

Here are basic steps to deep breathing, courtesy of the American Academy of Family Physicians:

* Lie on your back, on a flat surface.
* Place one hand on your stomach just above your belly button, and the other hand on your chest.
* Inhale slowly, making sure that your stomach rises a bit.
* Hold your breath for a second.
* Slowly exhale, letting your stomach sink back down.

By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter

TUESDAY, July 15 (HealthDay News) -- A stomach bacterium called Helicobacter pylori may reduce a child's risk of developing asthma by as much as 50 percent, a new study suggests.

H. pylori has been present in the human stomach probably since humans were humans. However, the germ began disappearing over the course of the 20th century with the introduction of antibiotics and cleaner water and homes, perhaps making children more susceptible to asthma, the study authors suggested.

Tobacco makers would no longer be able to cite U.S. government approval for "light" or "low-tar" cigarettes under a rule change proposed by the Federal Trade Commission, USA Today reported.

The agency said it wants to end a 1966 policy that allows cigarette makers to mention tar and nicotine amounts "per FTC method," the newspaper reported Wednesday.

By Amanda Gardner
EmpowHer's HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, June 23 (HealthDay News) -- The shocking revelation by her father that 24-year-old British singer-songwriter Amy Winehouse may have a mild form of emphysema leaves experts with more questions than answers.

It's possible that Winehouse, in addition to her well-publicized use of drugs and cigarettes, has a congenital condition that contributed to her current crisis, one lung doctor said.

Smoking marijuana while pregnant may harm the developing brain of a fetus, say researchers at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland.

In tests on mice, the researchers found that marijuana can affect molecules essential to a signaling process that plays a role in normal brain development. The researchers also found that certain prescription drugs, including some used to treat obesity, can have a similar effect, BBC News reported.