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Watching a child struggle to breathe during an asthma attack is frightening for any parent. So it is only natural that most moms and dads will try just about anything — including spending a lot of money — to keep an attack at bay. Trouble is, more than half of parents are trying strategies that simply don't work and wasting hundreds of dollars in the process, according to a study published last week in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

The report, based on interviews with the parents of 896 asthmatic children in 10 different cities, contained some good news. Eighty percent of parents had a handle on at least one of the triggers that worsened their children's asthma. After that, however, many parents seemed to go astray, taking precautions that weren't helpful "and made little sense," according to Dr. Michael Cabana, a pediatrician at the University of Michigan's C.S. Mott Children's Hospital, who led the study.

One of the most common mistakes was to buy a mattress cover to protect against dust mites for a child whose asthma was exacerbated instead by plant pollen. Many of those parents then neglected to do what would have helped a lot more: shut the windows to keep pollen out. Another was using a humidifier for a child who was allergic to dust mites; a humidifier tends to be a place where dust mites like to breed. With those allergies, a dehumidifier works better.

Worst of all was the number of smokers with asthmatic children who didn't even try to quit or at least limit themselves to smoking outdoors rather than just moving to another room or the garage. Second-hand smoke has been proved, over and over again, to be a major trigger of asthma attacks. Many smoking parents purchased expensive air filters that have what Cabana called "questionable utility."

Part of the problem, Dr. Cabana and his colleagues believe, is that parents are bombarded by television ads that encourage them to buy products such as air and carpet fresheners, ionizers and other remedies that are often expensive but medically unnecessary. And doctors may not always take the time, or have the time, to explain to parents what will and won't work in their child's particular case. For example, allergies are usually a problem for older children with asthma, while kids 5 and younger more frequently have trouble with viral respiratory infections. So make sure you understand what's really triggering your child's asthma. And remember, the best solutions are not always the most expensive ones.

Sanjay Gupta is a neurosurgeon and CNN medical correspondent

• Sanjay Gupta