The asthma charity found that asthmatic people are considerably underestimating their risk of having an attack.
Over half of respondents did not think they were at increased risk however the results reveal that actually 93% were at increased or highly increased risk.
Asthma kills three people every day, and someone is admitted to hospital with a terrifying and potentially fatal asthma attack every seven minutes in the UK, yet asthma attacks and hospital admissions can be prevented by spotting and treating early warning signs.
Asthma UK have created a test, called the Triple A Test, which is aimed to help people with asthma to help them find out their risk of having an asthma attack and advise them what they can do to reduce it.
The test asks simple questions about factors which have all been independently linked to an increased or highly increased risk of an asthma attack that could lead to a frightening hospital admission, for example how often respondents use their blue (reliever) inhaler. The test makes clear that everyone’s asthma is different and symptoms can come and go; this does not mean there is no risk of an attack when symptoms are absent.
The Triple A Test has also proved popular with celebrities who have asthma. Presenter, actor and author Stephen Fry, actress Barbara Windsor, designer and television presenter Kevin McCloud and Olympic runner Jo Pavey are among those who took the test and found that they are at increased risk of having an attack.
Sunderland footballer Louis Saha, who also did the test, comments, ‘Football is a tough sport to be involved in for someone with asthma, it’s a disadvantage in a way. I’ve had to find a way to control my asthma because of the work I do and I have always behaved very well with my medicine. I’m very experienced at controlling it. Anything that can be done to prevent asthma attacks is good.’
You can take the Triple A Test here: http://www.asthma.org.uk/triplea.
