Hay fever can increase your risk of an asthma attack

I hope you had a lovely long Easter weekend (and the nice four day week that followed) whether it was spending time with family and loved ones or just chilling and taking time out before the return to school, work and ‘normality’ on Monday.

This weather has been very kind to us and apart from potential rain today, it looks set to continue.

You may be feeling the effects of hay fever or are starting to. My hay fever usually starts in March with the tree pollen, but this year it’s been later than normal and has hit me this week, so out came the antihistamines.

This has prompted me to share with you an article directly from Asthma UK.

80% of people with asthma say hay fever triggers asthma symptoms. This is because: 

• it can cause your already inflamed airways to swell up even more, leaving you fighting for breath
• it makes your already sensitive airways more likely to react to other triggers like dust or pollution
• if hay fever combines with a cold, the extra inflammation can make your asthma symptoms even worse. 

 Carry your reliever inhaler (usually blue) every day

Reliever inhalers quickly relax the muscles in your airways and ease your symptoms on the spot – but only for a short period of time. For long term control, start using a preventer inhaler. Your GP can prescribe inhalers if you don’t have them.

Take your preventer inhaler as prescribed

Preventer inhalers reduce sensitivity and swelling in your airways, helping stop wheezing and coughing before they even start. Take consistently for best results.  

Blitz hay fever symptoms with antihistamine pills and sprays and/or a steroid nasal spray

There are lots of different medicine options and it’s a question of finding out which ones suit you. 

 Discover which pollen is your personal trigger

 Around 95% of people’s hay fever is triggered by grass pollen. But pollen is also released by trees as early as February and by weeds as late as September. You can be allergic to more than one kind of pollen across the year.

 To work out which pollen sets off your hay fever, note the days when your symptoms are bad and use our pollen calendar to see which pollen could be your trigger.