'Too many people underestimate the danger of asthma'
More than 100,000 people across Wales may not realise that they are at risk of an asthma attack, the charity Asthma UK Cymru warns.
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'The vast majority of asthma deaths are avoidable'
Rosie Newbigging, from the charity Asthma UK, says "the vast majority of asthma deaths are avoidable", but people with asthma need to be more aware of the risks they face.
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Adults with asthma urged to take test online
The new figures about how many people underestimate the risk caused by their asthma come from 2,498 Welsh responses to a test set up by Asthma UK.
The charity is urging adults with asthma to take the 'Avoid Asthma Attacks' test.
It says that the test only takes 60 seconds, will reveal someone's risk of having an asthma attack, and tell them how they can reduce it.
Take the test yourself on the Asthma UK website
Common risks include not taking your preventer inhaler every day, ignoring worsening symptoms and not having a personal asthma action plan.
The 'Advice for you' section of the Asthma UK website has much more information
Charity: Attitude of 'it's just asthma' needs to change
– John Mathias, National Director of Asthma UK CymruToo many people with asthma are unaware that the condition can be fatal and that they are regularly taking huge risks with their lives.
We can all help stop asthma deaths, and we need to start by changing the attitude that 'it's just asthma'.
We've launched the Stop Asthma Deaths campaign to help people reduce their chance of having of an attack - but they can't do this alone.
Healthcare professionals also have a crucial part to play in helping people manage their asthma and spotting who may be in danger.
Asthma affects 1 in 10 people in Wales
Asthma UK Cymru says:
- 314,000 people in Wales are currently receiving treatment for asthma - 1 in 10 of the population
- There were 62 deaths from asthma in Wales in 2010
People in Wales 'underestimate risk of an asthma attack'
More than 110,000 people in Wales don't realise they are a risk of an asthma attack, according to new research.
Asthma UK Cymru found that 48% of people who took their test, who have asthma, don't think they are at risk of an attack.
The vast majority of those people are wrong, and are at danger, the charity says.
It says the data shows people with asthma considerably underestimate their risk of potentially fatal attacks, and is launching a campaign called 'Stop Asthma Deaths' to try to make people more aware of the danger.
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Cardiff University fungi discovery could help future asthma sufferers
This is not the first time researchers at Cardiff University have made the link between fungi and asthma. Previous research found that removing fungi from people's homes could help improve life for asthma sufferers.
– Dr Hugo van Woerden, Cardiff UniversityHistorically, the lungs were thought to be sterile. Our analysis found that there are large numbers of fungi present in healthy human lungs. The study also demonstrates that asthma patients have a large number of fungi in their lungs and that the species of fungi are quite different to those present in the lungs of healthy individuals
Establishing the presence of fungi in the lungs of patients with asthma could potentially open up a new field of research which brings together molecular techniques for detecting fungi and developing treatments for asthma.
Fungi discovery helping asthma research
Researchers at Cardiff University say hundreds of tiny fungal particles found in the lungs of people suffering from asthma could help in developing new treatments.
It was previously thought that the lungs were sterile, but a new study undertaken by university researchers has found the presence of large numbers of fungi in healthy lungs.The researchers hope the discovery could lead to new lines of research and better treatments for sufferers in the future.
Asthma sufferers 'underestimating the risk'
A charity is calling for asthma sufferers to be more aware of the risks of not treating their condition.
Asthma UK says one in three asthma sufferers in Wales are at high risk of having a potentially fatal attack.
The condition kills around 60 people in Wales every year, with 3,500 admitted to hospital following an asthma attack.
John Mathias, from Asthma UK, called the figures are "extremely worrying" .
"As up to 75% of emergency hospital admissions are preventable with better management and support it's vitally important that the 314,000 people in Wales with asthma understand their condition", he said.
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