asthma

Everyday

An illness that makes the small air tubes in the lungs become narrow, so that breathing is hard and a person may cough, wheeze and feel a tight chest. tree →

In the lessons

In health lessons, many children have asthma and use an inhaler (puffer) with medicine to open their airways. Triggers can include exercise, cold air, dust, pollen, smoke and colds. In safety lessons, you learn to tell an adult quickly if a friend is having an asthma attack. Phrases: asthma attack, have asthma, asthma inhaler, asthma trigger.

Examples

• My friend has asthma and carries an inhaler. tree →
• Cold air can bring on her asthma. tree →
• During an asthma attack it is hard to breathe. tree →
• Tell a teacher at once if someone cannot breathe. tree →
• He uses his puffer before running. tree →
• Smoke is bad for people with asthma. tree →
• I forgot to tell you that the Shark was suffering from asthma, so that whenever he breathed a storm seemed to blow. tree →

Note

Uncountable: "She has asthma", not "an asthma". Spelling and pronunciation trap: a-s-t-h-m-a, said "AZ-muh" or "ASS-muh"; the "th" is silent. The adjective is "asthmatic". Asthma is not catching; you cannot get it from a friend. In Australia and New Zealand an inhaler is often called a "puffer".