Asthma Update
I am saddened to report that three young New Zealanders have died in the last 3 months from asthma, including ten-year-old Javier Aninion who you may see remembered on the cover of The Asthma and Respiratory Foundation’s Spring Newsletter.
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New Zealand has the second-highest rate of asthma deaths for 5–35-year olds in high income countries
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77 people died from asthma in 2018
- 1 in 7 New Zealand children are affected by asthma
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Maori and Pacific and low-income families are more likely to be hospitalised for asthma
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Asthma alone costs NZ$1.018 billion every year
It is not a case of what are we doing wrong, rather a case of what are we not doing. Yes, better access and compliance to preventer medication and dry homes will help improve these dreadful statistics. But advocating more potent medications, as suggested by
a recent study,
is not a game-changer and ignores the elephant in the room.
Self-management, including the Buteyko breathing programme that we run at Buteyko Breathing Clinics can be a game changer in reducing New Zealand’s appalling asthma statistics. Significant reductions in asthma symptoms and need for medication have been demonstrated in more than
12 published studies.
And these results are achieved every week in our clinic.
Read some of the feedback from our clients.
To that end, I have recently taken on the role as one of Asthma New Zealand’s ambassadors. Katheren Leitner, their new CE, believes youth will play a significant role in turning around some of the very grim statistics they are currently faced with. New Zealand is leading in so many of the wrong categories: asthma mortality, youth suicide, domestic violence. Health literacy must be a priority for our young people. Without it poverty is at its highest.
Katheren, the other ambassadors, my fellow practitioners and I have many projects on the go to reduce these statistics. I will report some of these in my next update. If you or someone you know has asthma, then contact our clinic to find out how we can help. You might just save a life.
