Asthma is a common condition that affects the lungs and airways. It affects 5.4 million UK residents, 1 in 11 children and 1 in 12 adults. If asthma is not managed properly, this leaves you at risk of an asthma attack which causes around 3 deaths every day in the UK.
Asthma affects your breathing and usually flares up after coming into contact with a trigger. The symptoms include a tight chest, wheezing, breathlessness and coughing.
An asthma attack is a medical emergency. It happens when your asthma symptoms worsen to the point where you cannot breathe properly. The signs of an asthma attack are:
An asthma attack might occur suddenly or your symptoms might gradually become worse. Either way, if it happens then follow these steps:
There are a variety of risk factors that can make you more likely to have asthma. For example:
People with asthma have sensitive airways which are prone to inflammation. This results in a narrowing of the airways with mucus clogging them up, making it harder than normal to breathe. There are certain triggers that cause this to happen where asthma symptoms then flare-up. These can include:
Asthma is managed by taking medicine in the form of an inhaler. This means you are breathing in the medication directly to your lungs where it's needed. There are three types of inhalers to treat asthma:
Occupational asthma is caused by exposure to irritants while you are doing your job. If you have only just started to have asthma symptoms as a result of your job then this is classed as occupational asthma. Common jobs where this occurs include:
The triggers which often cause occupational asthma are:
After being diagnosed with asthma, you'll be given a written asthma plan from your doctor with details of your medications, how and when to take them and steps to take should you experience an asthma attack. Make sure you know how to use your inhaler properly and if you have a preventer inhaler keep using it every day even if you feel better. Record your symptoms in a diary to figure out what your triggers are. Write down as many details as you can about when they occurred and what environmental factors were present.
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