This is the story of asthma, a disease that makes it hard for people to breathe. It affects children and adults around the world. Asthma is the most common long-term illness in children, but it can be managed. With the right care and medicine, people with asthma can live full, active lives, according to WHO. What is asthma? Asthma is a lung disease. It happens when the airways in the lungs become swollen and tight. This makes it hard to breathe. Common signs are coughing, wheezing, chest tightness, and shortness of breath. These signs can get worse at night or during exercise. Sometimes, as

This is the story of asthma, a disease that makes it hard for people to breathe. It affects children and adults around the world. Asthma is the most common long-term illness in children, but it can be managed. With the right care and medicine, people with asthma can live full, active lives, according to WHO. What is asthma? Asthma is a lung disease. It happens when the airways in the lungs become swollen and tight. This makes it hard to breathe. Common signs are coughing, wheezing, chest tightness, and shortness of breath. These signs can get worse at night or during exercise. Sometimes, asthma symptoms get much worse. This is called an asthma attack. It can be very dangerous and needs quick treatment. Who gets asthma? Asthma affects about 262 million people around the world. In 2019, it caused 455,000 deaths. Many of these deaths happened in poor countries, where people do not have good access to doctors and medicine. Asthma is more likely if your parents or family members have it. It also affects people who have other allergies, like hay fever or eczema. Living in cities, breathing dirty air, and being exposed to smoke, dust, or chemicals can make asthma more likely. Living with asthma Asthma cannot be cured, but it can be controlled. People with asthma often use inhalers. Inhalers help open the airways or reduce swelling in the lungs. Some inhalers must be used every day. Others are used only when needed. Children may find it hard to use an inhaler. A device called a spacer helps them breathe in the medicine more easily. In places where medical supplies are limited, even a plastic bottle can be made into a spacer. But in many countries, people still cannot get the inhalers they need. In 2021, only half of low-income countries had bronchodilators in public health clinics, and only one-third had steroid inhalers. Education and Self-Care People with asthma need to learn how to care for themselves. They should know what makes their asthma worse — like dust, smoke, or cold air — and how to avoid those triggers. They also need to know when to use their medicine and when to get help. Doctors may give them an asthma action plan, which explains what to do if symptoms get worse. What is the World doing? The World Health Organization (WHO) is working to help people with asthma. They want to make sure people everywhere can be diagnosed and treated. The WHO has a program called PEN, which helps doctors in poor countries manage asthma and other long-term diseases. The WHO is also helping fight things that make asthma worse, like tobacco smoke and air pollution. They train healthcare workers to teach people how to protect themselves. One group helping the WHO is GARD — the Global Alliance against Chronic Respiratory Diseases. GARD wants to make sure everyone in the world can breathe freely. Asthma is a serious disease, but it doesn’t have to stop people from living their lives. With the right care, support, and education, people with asthma can breathe easier. This is the goal of doctors, health workers, and organizations around the world — a world where asthma doesn’t take away lives, but is treated with care and knowledge.    

A little more informed. A little more connected.