Asthma and Respiratory | Allergy UK | National Charity
Helpline01322 619898
Asthma is a common and long term lung condition that requires ongoing management. Asthma causes sensitivity to the airways, which can become inflamed and narrow on exposure to certain triggers, leading to difficulty in breathing.
The symptoms of asthma commonly starts in childhood but it is possible to develop asthma at any age. This condition cannot be cured, but with a good asthma action plan it can be well controlled.
Asthma is caused by swelling (inflammation) of the breathing tubes that carry air in and out of the lungs. This makes the tubes highly sensitive, so they temporarily narrow. It may happen randomly or after exposure to a trigger.
Common asthma triggers include:
Identifying and avoiding your asthma triggers can help you keep your symptoms under control.
Asthma symptoms are individual to each person and can come and go, it is possible to have one or more of the symptoms below:
These symptoms can also be caused by other conditions, so if you suspect you may have asthma you should see your GP.
In an asthma attack the muscles around your airways can become swollen and inflamed with increased mucus production resulting in one or more of the following symptoms: difficulty breathing, difficulty speaking, experiencing a wheeze, blue colour to the lips and feeling distressed.
Signs that you may be having an asthma attack include:
The symptoms will not necessarily occur suddenly. In fact, they often come on slowly over a few hours or days.
For advice and information on how to manage your asthma and asthma treatment, please download one of our useful factsheets.
Never be frightened of calling for help in an emergency and try to take the details of your medicines (or your personal asthma action plan) with you to hospital if possible.
If your symptoms improve and you do not need to call 999, get an urgent same-day appointment to see a GP or asthma nurse.
They may suggest doing some tests to confirm if you have asthma. However, these cannot always be done easily in young children, so your child may be given an asthma inhaler to see if it helps relieve their symptoms until they’re old enough to have the tests.
The main tests used to help diagnose asthma are:
After you’re diagnosed with asthma, you may also have a chest X-ray or allergy tests to see if your symptoms might be triggered by an allergy.
Asthma is usually treated by using an inhaler, a small device that lets you breathe in medicines.
The main types are:
Are you struggling to work out what could be contributing to your asthma symptoms? Your asthma could be made worse by unidentified allergies. Use our asthma tool kit to help find out.
Thunderstorm Asthma is caused by high winds drawing higher levels of pollens and pollution particles into the air. When the pollen granules come into contact with water the pollen breaks down into smaller particles that are released into the air, these particles are so small that when they are breathed in through the nose and mouth they can get deeper down into the smaller airways in the lungs and trigger asthma symptoms. Some airborne allergens involved in thunderstorm asthma are grass and tree pollens and mould spores.
Most people with hay fever will feel their normal symptoms, like sneezing, runny nose and itchy eyes. However, hay fever can cause asthma symptoms to worsen and these weather conditions can cause even mild symptoms to become severe (such as difficulty breathing and chest tightening). So it is important to be prepared and take your allergy treatments and medications to control symptoms.
Although asthma can normally be kept under control, it’s still a serious condition that can cause a number of problems. This is why it’s important to follow your treatment plan and not ignore your symptoms if they’re getting worse.
Badly controlled asthma can cause problems such as:
There’s also a risk of severe asthma attacks, which can be life threatening.
Many of the allergens that cause an allergic reaction can be found in our own homes (and even our place of work). House dust mites, for example, are tiny creatures, just a quarter of a millimetre long. House dust mite allergy is very common and associated with asthma, eczema and perennial allergic rhinitis. Mites are found in carpets, soft furnishing and clothing but a significant amount of exposure to house dust mite allergens happens in bed. You can take measures to avoid house dust mite, which will help, but will not entirely remove dust mite allergens.
Mould is another culprit. It is the spores from the mould that can trigger allergic symptoms such as runny/itchy nose, itchy eyes, eczema and, most importantly, asthma. There are ways to avoid moulds – ventilation is key to help stop moulds flourishing in a damp environment.
Air pollution is the top environmental risk to human health in the UK, and the fourth greatest threat to public health after cancer, heart disease and obesity.
It makes people more susceptible to respiratory infections and other illnesses and it can have a significant impact on those living with allergies. There is a proven link between the quality of the air we breathe and the health of people living with allergic disease. Sensitivity to the adverse effects of air pollutants will vary in individuals and air pollution levels will also vary seasonally, from day to day, as well as by the time of day.
Avoidance of allergy triggers is an important factor in managing an allergy. For people living with an allergy there is a significant benefit in choosing products which will help them to manage their condition. Product such as air filters, washing machines with allergy cycles, and specially formulated cleaning products can all play their part.
Our Product Endorsement Scheme is recognised globally, providing assurance that a product has been scientifically tested by Allergy UK to confirm its claims. The development of this scheme several years ago forms part of our broader mission to help improve the lives of people living with allergy. The product choices in our schemes has grown to become a wide range of product types that can play a role in allergy management.
It is important to Allergy UK that we can engage with all people that are affected by allergic disease
Join our mailing list
