Hello-
I'm not sure what the best alternative method is, however I bought a book recently from healthshop101 (http://healthshop101.com/angbook.html) that has a lot of different minerals in it that you can take to help with asthma. Some of the different minerals are: magnesium, manganese, sulfur, potassium, selenium, and calcium. You can also get those minerals off of the healthshop101.com website. I have used these minerals for a while now for some health issues I've been having and have found them effective. It is not an instant cure, but I have definitely seen a big difference.