Asthma – What You Need to Know

Asthma – What You Need to Know

This podcast is presented by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC – safer, healthier people.

When asthma attacks, it's frightening. Asthma is a common, chronic disease of children, but adults have it, too. Children and adults die every year from asthma and its complications.

An asthma attack happens in the paths that carry air to your lungs. The sides of the airways swell and less air gets in and out of your lungs. The mucus that your body produces clogs up the airways even more. The attack may include coughing, chest tightness, wheezing, and trouble breathing.

In most cases, we don't know what causes asthma, and we don't have a cure. If you have asthma, you have it all the time, but you will have asthma attacks only when something in the environment bothers your lungs, such as house dust mites and tobacco smoke. These are called asthma triggers.

Control your asthma by knowing the warning signs of an attack, staying away from asthma triggers, and following the advice of your health care provider.

Learn more at www.cdc.gov/vitalsigns.

For the most accurate health information, visit www.cdc.gov or call 1-800-CDC-INFO, 24/7.