World Asthma Day
01 May 2018
Asthma awareness
Asthma is a long-term condition that affects the tubes carrying air in and out of the lungs. There are a number of known reasons for why some people are more likely to develop asthma, and there are a number of research studies looking at the reason why more people are getting asthma.
According to the NHS symptoms can include:
• wheezing (a whistling sound when breathing)
• breathlessness
• a tight chest, which may feel like a band is tightening around it
• coughing
• If symptoms can sometimes get temporarily worse. This is known as an asthma attack.
Diagnosis of the type of asthma someone has can take time. For some they may have severe or difficult to manage asthma, for others their asthma may be generally well managed with medications. However, common triggers like pets, dust, pollen, exercise cold weather and cigarette smoke can make asthma symptoms worse.
According to Asthma UK the UK has some of the highest asthma rates in Europe and on average 3 people a day die from asthma. For that reason it’s really useful for everyone (whether they have asthma or not) to be aware what to do during an asthma attack.
If you think you have asthma, or a family member has asthma, it's very important to make an appointment with your GP.
If you are concerned about managing your asthma in the workplace you can speak to Occupational Health via a self-referral or HR.
More information
The Wellbeing Team always welcomes contributions to the Wellbeing Blog via wellbeing@manchester.ac.uk
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