Daily life

With the right treatment and management, asthma shouldn’t restrict your daily life.

Sleeping

Asthma symptoms are often worse at night. This means you might wake up some nights coughing or with a tight chest. Effectively controlling your asthma with the treatment your doctor or nurse recommends will reduce your symptoms, so you should sleep better.

Exercise

If you have asthma symptoms during or after exercise, speak to your doctor or asthma nurse. It is likely that they will review your general symptoms and personal asthma plan to make sure your asthma is under control

Your doctor or asthma nurse may also tell you to:

• Use a reliever inhaler (usually blue) 10-15 minutes before you exercise and again after two hours of prolonged exercise, or when you finish. 
• Structure your exercise plan around short-burst activities and ensure you warm up properly. 
• Exercise in humid environments, such as swimming pools. 
• Breathe through your nose to avoid hyperventilation (excessively rapid and deep breathing).

Diet

Most people with asthma can eat a normal, healthy diet. Occasionally, people with asthma may have food-based allergic triggers and will need to avoid foods such as cows' milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, yeast products, nuts and some food colourings and preservatives. However, this is rare.

Want to know more?

• Asthma UK: Healthy lifestyles.
• Asthma UK: Exercise and asthma.

Know your triggers

It is important to identify triggers where possible by making a note of any worsening symptoms or by using your peak flow meter during exposure to certain situations. Some triggers, such as air pollution, viral illness or certain weather conditions, can be hard to avoid. However, it may be possible to avoid other triggers, such as dust mites, fungal spores or pet fur.

Want to know more?

• Asthma UK: Asthma triggers A-Z.

Complications of asthma

Quality of life

Badly controlled asthma can have an adverse effect on your quality of life. The condition can result in:

• fatigue
• underperformance or absence from work (in the UK, asthma accounts for at least 12.7 million work days lost each year)
• psychological problems including stress, anxiety and depression

If you feel that your asthma is seriously affecting your quality of life, contact your GP or asthma clinic. Your personal asthma action plan may need to be reviewed to better control the condition.

Respiratory complications

In rare cases, asthma can lead to a number of serious respiratory complications, including:

• pneumonia (infection of the lungs)
• a collapse of part or all of the lung
• respiratory failure, where the levels of oxygen in the blood become dangerously low, or the levels of carbon dioxide become dangerously high)
• status asthmaticus (severe asthma attacks that do not respond to treatment)

All of these complications are life threatening and will need medical treatment.

Death

In the UK in 2006, there were 1,200 deaths from asthma, 40 of which were in children aged 14 or under. On average, three people a day die from asthma.

Asthma and pregnancy

There is no danger that the medicines you use for asthma will cause any problems for the developing baby in the womb. Due to the changes that take place in the body during pregnancy, many women find that their asthma symptoms change when they are pregnant. Some women’s asthma improves during pregnancy, some women’s asthma worsens and for others asthma stays the same.

The most severe asthma symptoms experienced by pregnant women tend to occur between the 24th and 36th week of pregnancy. Symptoms then decrease significantly during the last month of pregnancy. Only 10% of women experience asthma symptoms during labour and delivery, and these symptoms can normally be controlled through the use of reliever medicine.

You should manage your asthma in the same way as you did before you were pregnant. The medicines used for asthma have been proven to be safe to take during pregnancy and when breastfeeding your child. The one exception is leukotriene receptor antagonists. While there is no evidence that it can harm babies during pregnancy and breastfeeding, there is not enough evidence about its safety compared with other asthma medications.

However, if you need to take leukotriene receptor antagonists to control your asthma, your GP or asthma clinic may recommend that you carry on taking them. This is because the risks to you and your child from uncontrolled asthma are far higher than any potential risk from this medicine.

Want to know more?

• Asthma UK: Pregnancy FAQs.

Financial support

Asthma is classed as a disability if it has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on your ability to carry out normal daily activities. This impairment must:

• have lasted for 12 months
• be likely to last 12 months or
• be of a recurring nature where a recurrence is likely in a 12-month period

If you or your child has care or mobility needs because of asthma, you may be entitled to benefits.

Want to know more?

• Prescription costs.

Occupational asthma

If you develop asthma because of your work and this is fully documented by your doctor and your employer, you can make a claim for Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit from the Benefits Agency. This pays £20-100 a week to people with asthma that was caused by certain respiratory sensitisers. You can still claim even if your respiratory sensitiser is not on this list, as long as it is a 'known sensitiser' (a complete list is available from the Health and Safety Executive).

If you want to take legal action against your employer because of occupational asthma, your lawyer must act within three years of diagnosis.

Want to know more?

• DirectGov: Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit (diseases and deafness).
• Money Advice Service.

Get in touch with others

Many people with a long-term health condition experience feelings of stress, anxiety and depression.

You may find it helpful to talk about your experience of asthma with others in a similar position. Patient organisations have local groups where you can meet others who have been diagnosed with asthma and undergone treatment.

If you experience feelings of depression, talk to your GP. They will be able to give you advice and support. Alternatively, you can find depression support services in your area.

Want to know more?

• Chat about asthma online at Asthma UK’s forum.