Asthma is a condition that affects the airways.

These are the small tubes that carry air in and out of the lungs. When your airways become irritated they can become narrower and that make it harder to breathe.

The lining of the airways can become inflamed and swell.

The symptoms are: wheezing, coughing, tightness in your chest, shortness of breath.

There are number of things you should know about how asthma develops and its likely causes:

• You can develop asthma at any age. Some people get asthma during childhood and it is not uncommon for it to disappear, only to return in later life. Some people develop "late onset" asthma in later life even though they never had symptoms as a child.

• Asthma is often hereditary

• Late onset asthma can arise with or without exposure to irritants

• Irritants in the workplace can lead to a person developing asthma

• Occupational asthma is caused by breathing in substances at work. Once the lungs become sensitive further exposure to the substance can provoke a further attack.

• Exposure to irritants at work can inflame the airways of individuals with pre-existing conditions. Sometimes the individual does not become sensitised to the agent but the attack can still be work related.

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