(HealthDay News) -- Allergy and asthma symptoms can be caused by a variety of factors, both indoors and outdoors.

The American Lung Association offers this list of common "triggers" that can set off a reaction in the lungs and elsewhere in the body:

  • Breathing cold air.
  • Exposure to smoke, from tobacco products and wood-burning fires.
  • Exposure to chemicals with strong odors or fumes, such as hairspray, perfume or paint.
  • Allergens, such as dust mites, pollen, animal dander, molds and pollution.
  • Respiratory illnesses, such as a cold or the flu.

Other factors may spur your symptoms, and your doctor may suggest keeping an asthma diary to help pinpoint which triggers affect you.