An Asthma Management Guide

An Asthma Management Guide

Asthma affects around 8 million people in just the UK (roughly 12 per cent of the population). There is no currently known cure for asthma, but it can be managed with proper treatment. Asthma can afflict anyone at any age, but it is more commonly found in women and children. Many children grow out of asthma but in some cases, it goes on to become a chronic condition. 

Asthma Causes

Asthma symptoms range from mild to severe and asthma attacks can be potentially life-threatening. Asthma creates inflammation and excess mucus production in the bronchi (tubes which lead to the lungs) and can cause narrowing of the airways – which leads to feelings of breathlessness, coughing and wheezing. 

The direct causes of asthma are not fully understood, but it is believed that there can be environmental and genetic factors that contribute to this condition. Environmental causes can be things like pollutants and allergens, and genetic factors can be things like a family history of asthma or propensity towards allergies. 

What can trigger asthma?

Knowing what triggers asthma can make it much easier to control – as once you’re aware of these you can take steps to avoid them. Common asthma triggers include:

• Allergens – dust, animal fur, and pollen
• Pollutants and tobacco smoke
• Moderate or intense exercise
• Strong emotions – like stress and anxiety 
• Allergies to foods 
• Weather conditions 
• Respiratory conditions – like the flu
• Other medications – Like non-steroidal-anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) or beta-blockers
• Damp and Mould
• Alcohol

How to treat and control Asthma

Asthma is treated in a two-pronged approach, usually including a combination of relief inhalers and preventative inhalers. How often or what kinds of medications are in the inhalers depends upon the doctor’s or medical professional’s evaluation. 

Relief inhalers

Relief inhalers are often blue and are used to relieve the acute symptoms of asthma. They contain medicine that treats symptoms such as coughing, wheezing, and breathlessness. These medicines are usually beta-2 agonists that relax the muscles involved in breathing. 

Preventative inhalers

The long-term approach to treating asthma is to reduce inflammation that causes the painful symptoms associated with asthma. Preventative inhalers are often red, brown, or orange and these are usually taken once or twice daily, depending upon the medicine that your doctor has prescribed. 

These medicines usually contain some kind of corticosteroids to help control asthma. 

Handling asthma attacks

While asthma sufferers may feel occasionally breathless from time to time sometimes symptoms become much more intense and also much more dangerous for the sufferer. Action should be taken immediately and these are the signs of an asthma attack to look out for: 

• Breathing too quickly
• Rapid heartbeat
• Feeling dizzy or tired
• Reliever inhaler becomes less effective
• Tightness in the chest
• Wheezing and coughing
• Breathlessness
• Finding it difficult to speak
• Lips or fingers turning blue

The best course of action for dealing with an asthma attack is the following:

• Breathe in 1 – 2 puffs from your reliever (usually blue) inhaler. 
• Try to calm and steady your breathing by taking slower and more even breaths. 
• Take 2 more puffs from your inhaler if things haven’t improved.

In the case of an asthma attack space out puffs from your inhaler every two minutes. You can take a maximum of ten puffs from your reliever inhaler, but if there is no improvement then you should contact the ambulance service and seek immediate medical attention. 

Diagnosis

If you believe you have asthma then you will first need to get a diagnosis from a doctor before you can consider medical treatments. Asthma medicine cannot be bought over the counter in the UK. Getting a proper diagnosis is essential for effective treatment because your doctor can rule out any other health concerns.