As school starts you will likely be spending time at back to school parties and orientations and other similar events. With predictions that swine flu will be back, Asthma UK offers these suggestions for people with asthma:
- Asthmatics are no more likely to catch swine flu than anyone else but infections like swine flu could worsen your asthma.
- Good control of your asthma is important so that your asthma does not get worse as a result of getting swine flu.
- Asthma UK advises you update your Personal Asthma Action Plan with your physician. If you don’t have one, ask your GP or asthma nurse.
- Symptoms of swine flu are similar to those produced by regular seasonal flu. Symptoms include fever, cough, sore throat, body aches, chills and fatigue.
- Covering your nose and mouth when you cough and sneeze and good hand washing helps prevent the spread of all types of flu.
I read another really helpful tip from an Australian website. It recommended going in for a lung function check before school starts, to make sure your child is in top health from the very beginning. That sounded like a great idea to me, and I’m actually taking my 10 year-old for a check-up today, one week before she heads back to school.
From a physician’s perspective, do you think this is worth doing?
Yes I think it is a great idea. You have the oppurtunity to update your asthma plan and make sure everything is going ok before school starts.