Breathing exercises can help asthma control
06 June 2006

Breathing techniques may help people with mild asthma to reduce the use of their inhalers, a new study has revealed.

Researchers from the University of Sydney, Australia, found that breathing techniques helped participants in the study decrease the use of their reliever inhaler by more than 80% and halved the dose of their preventer inhaler.

The team recruited 57 people with mild asthma who used a preventer inhaler and needed to use their reliever inhaler at least four times a week. The controlled trial compared the effect of two breathing techniques on symptoms, lung function, use of medicines and quality of life.

The participants practised their allocated breathing technique twice a day for 30 days and used it when they had asthma symptoms. At the start of the study the average use of reliever was around three puffs a day, by the end of the study this had fallen to one puff every three days – signifying better asthma control.

‘There have been a number of studies recently suggesting that at least some people with asthma may benefit from different types of breathing exercises,’ said Dr Mike Thomas, Asthma UK Research Fellow.

‘This study compared two types of breathing exercises taught to people with asthma as an alternative to immediately reaching for their reliever inhaler when they became breathless or wheezy; no differences were seen between the groups using the two exercises, but both groups showed a dramatic reduction in their rescue inhaler use. This may be of importance to people with asthma, but further research is needed to understand which people it may help and how the exercises work.'

One technique focussed on shallow nasal breathing with slow exhalations, and the second technique used general upper body exercises, accompanied by relaxation. Quality of life scores remained unchanged in both groups and there were no changes in lung function or airway responsiveness in either group.

‘People who are willing to make the commitment to breathing exercises may well benefit as part of their personal asthma action plan,’ commented Erica Evans, Asthma Care Development Manager at Asthma UK. ‘But it is important to continue treatments prescribed by your doctor and to take medical advice. If you have any concerns, call the Asthma UK Adviceline on 08457 01 02 03.’