Today is World Asthma Day, an annual event organized by the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) to raise awareness about Asthma across the world. It’s celebrated every year on the first Tuesday of May. Asthma is a chronic lung disease that is caused by inflammation of the airways. It’s a lung disease that can affect people of all ages but it is most commonly found among children.
This year marks the 20th annual World Asthma Day and the theme is: “Never Too Early, Never Too Late. It’s always the right time to address airways disease.” This theme is a call to action for both patients and healthcare providers worldwide. The aim is to evaluate the symptoms regardless of the point of time as to when they occurred and take action to control the disease.
World Asthma Day was first held in 1998 and today it has become one of the most important Asthma events. Several awareness activities are organized in all countries throughout the world to educate people about this health hazard.
As per WHO, 235 Million people suffer from Asthma which causes breathlessness, chest tightness, wheezing and coughing. Talking about the US, almost half of the people had an asthma attack (also called episode) in 2012 of which 55% where children and 49% were adults.
Asthma is not just a health hazard for developed countries, it’s found in all countries irrespective of the level of development. Reportedly, more than 80% of asthma deaths take place in low and middle-income countries. These episodes are sometimes life-threatening and may also reduce the quality of life of the patients.
Although there is no permanent cure, the disease can be controlled and the attacks can be prevented by staying cautious. One can learn how to avoid asthma triggers like air pollution, cold, flu, smoke, etc. Raising awareness can go a long way in preventing and controlling asthma attacks.
