World Asthma Day: Small things that can make a big difference to asthma control

Across the world hundreds of millions of people suffer from asthma. Asthma affects people from all walks of life – from football legend David Beckham and actress and television personality, Bonang Matheba, to children and adults of all ages.

In South Africa asthma is the most common chronic illness in children and its prevalence is increasing in both urban and rural areas.

3 May is World Asthma Day, organised by the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA), a World Health Organisation collaborative organisation founded in 1993.

South Africa is rated 25th in the world for asthma prevalence, but fourth in asthma mortality, with an estimated 18.5 deaths per 100 000 asthma cases.

The causes of asthma:

Paediatric allergy and asthma specialist, Professor Claudia Gray says the reason why some people get asthma is a culmination of many factors, including environmental and inherited (genetic) factors.

Prof Gray says the most common triggers of asthma attacks in those with asthma include airborne allergens, such as pollen, dust mites, mould spores, pet dander or particles of cockroach waste; respiratory infections, such as the common cold; certain medications; exercise; stress/anxiety; cold air and air pollutants and irritants.

South Africa’s air quality is rated as moderately unsafe by the WHO, with the main contributors to poor air quality including the mining and agricultural industry and coal burning.

Seasonal variations in air quality exist, with high levels of air pollution during the dry season (January and February) due to forest and veld fires. The WHO said available data indicates that Hartbeespoort, Johannesburg, Vereeniging, Mpumalanga, and Sebokeng are cities with consistently high levels of air pollution.

Trevor Brewer, director of air treatment specialists Solenco, says it’s not only the air outside our homes that is polluted. “The air inside our homes could also contribute to asthma attacks, especially in poorly ventilated conditions as well as damp, dark and mouldy areas,” he says.

How to manage your asthma:

While there is no cure for asthma, proper medical assessment, the use of controller and reliever inhalers and some practical actions to reduce allergens and irritants can help asthma sufferers cope with their disease.

How to stop your home from triggering an asthma attack:

Indoor air quality is often worse than outdoor air quality, but it’s easy to improve the air we breathe in our immediate environment to keep our lungs healthy. Here are some tips:

Ventilation. Breathing in old, stale air in your home exposes you to contamination by infective agents as well as allergens. Natural ventilation is considered an effective measure to prevent infections. To prevent inhaling germs spread in the air, keep the doors and windows open; this will reduce the chances of getting sick.

1. Specific allergen reduction. Different allergens need different measures to reduce their levels. For example, house dust mite levels can be reduced by efficient vacuuming of carpets, removal of soft, fluffy items, as well as hot-washing bedding.
2. Let nature help. The air you breathe contains more than 187 toxins that can negatively impact your health and make asthma attacks worse. The American space agency, NASA, found that certain plants are capable of filtering toxins from the air we breathe. All these plants can be found easily in South Africa and include Aloe Vera, Bamboo Palm, English Ivy, Snake Plant, and the Peace Lily.

World Asthma Day is commemorated to shine a spotlight on a disease that, while incurable, can be managed with the some of the above practical measures. “By sharing more educational advice and creating awareness about asthma triggers and the impact of our air quality, we hope to see a meaningful change to South Africa’s frightening mortality rate associated with Asthma,” concluded Prof Gray.