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     Volume 4 Issue 59 |August 19, 2005 |


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Education

Read the following article and answer the questions that follow
Does your chest regularly feel tight? Do you find it difficult to breathe after light exercise? Do you sometimes make a wheezing sound when you breathe? If so, you might be asthmatic. If you have breathing problems please consult a doctor, but even if you do have asthma - don't worry, you are not alone.

What is asthma?
Asthma is a condition that affects hundreds of millions of people worldwide and more than 5 million people in the UK are asthmatic, about one in thirteen people. It is a lung disease that affects your airways the tubes that carry air to and from your lungs. It causes the muscles in these tubes to contract, the tubes themselves to swell and also causes sticky mucus to be produced. All of these factors can make it very difficult for a sufferer to breathe properly.

Shortness of breath, especially after exercise, coughing, or difficulty breathing while sleeping, are all common symptoms. These can be described as mild asthma attacks; however, they can usually be controlled by medication. A severe asthma attack, on the other hand, where a sufferer finds it very difficult to breathe, may require hospital treatment. How badly you are affected by these symptoms depends on what type of asthma you have; from mild to chronic; and how well you are able to control the disorder.

What causes it?
Asthma is not contagious, although it's still not known precisely what causes it. People can be born with it; develop it in childhood, or at any age. If you have asthma, it's likely that someone else in your family had it, as the illness is known to run in families. There is also some evidence that environmental factors, such as diet, housing conditions or smoking during pregnancy, can cause asthma.

Having the condition doesn't necessarily mean you will suffer badly from the symptoms. Mild or moderate asthma can be easily controlled through medication or lifestyle changes. Additionally, all attacks need a trigger, and if these triggers such as pollution, smoking, dust, animal hair, stress, pollen, exercise and cold air can be identified and avoided, the likelihood of an attack decreases. These triggers are personal to each individual sufferer, so if you have asthma, make sure you know what is causing your attacks, you can then better avoid these triggers.

Medicine and preventative measures
It wasn't until the mid 20th century that doctors realised what caused asthma attacks. Consequently, in the last 40 years there have been many developments in its treatment. There are presently two main types of medicine: preventers and relievers. A preventer is used every day and reduces the swelling of the airways, cutting the risk of an attack. A reliever, such as Ventolin, is taken when breathing has become (or is going to become) difficult, this actually relaxes the muscles of the airways, reducing constriction and improving the airflow. The medicine is usually taken using an inhaler.

Prevention is also good treatment, so if you have asthma, remember to keep generally healthy, take regular exercise and lots of vitamin C to avoid colds and flu which can be dangerous for asthma sufferers. A healthy diet is also important, and do watch what you eat, as certain foods or food additives can be asthma triggers.

By taking the right medication and making the right lifestyle choices, there is no reason why most asthma sufferers shouldn't be able to lead perfectly healthy and active lives.

The future
Unfortunately there is still no cure for asthma, although the development of new treatments has led to a much better quality of life for most sufferers. However, the number of people being diagnosed as asthmatic has increased dramatically over the past 20 years. This increase could be due to environmental or dietary factors, but for the moment researchers are puzzled.

A. Some of the words from the text are listed below.
Can you match them with their definitions?

1. If you hold someone or something ........................... , you hold them firmly and securely.
2. If a part of your body is ........................... , it feels rather uncomfortable and painful, for example because you are ill, anxious, or angry.
3. A ........................... bend or corner is one that changes direction very quickly so that you cannot see very far round it.
4. A ........................... schedule or budget allows very little time or money for unexpected events or expenses.
5. If someone ........................... , they breathe with difficulty and make a whistling sound.
6. A ........................... situation involves problems or is embarrassing.
7. ........................... weather is unpleasantly hot and damp.
8. If something is done ........................... or goes ........................... , it is not very successful or effective.
9. If someone or something is ........................... hurt or ........................... affected, they are severely hurt or affected.
10. If you want or need something ........................... , you want or need it very much.
11. If someone behaves ........................... or treats other people ........................... , they act in an unkind, unpleasant, or unacceptable way.
12. If a person or their job is ........................... paid, they are not paid very much for what they do.
13. A disease that is ........................... can be caught by touching people or things that are infected with it.
14. A feeling or attitude that is ........................... spreads quickly among a group of people.
15. If something .......................s. an event or situation, it causes it to begin to happen or exist.
16. If something acts as a ........................... for another thing such as an illness, event, or situation, it causes the second thing to begin to happen or exist.
17. The ........................... of something happening is how likely it is to happen
18. If you ........................... that something is done, you take action so that it is done
19. If something ........................... you to do something, it influences or affects you in such a way that you do it.
20. A ........................... for an illness is a medicine or other treatment that ........................... s the illness.

B. Match a verb from column A with an expression
from column B.

C. Fill in the gaps by choosing a verb from the box below.
You may have to change the verb form.

1. Asthma is a condition that _______________ millions of people worldwide.
2. It's still not known precisely what ____________ asthma.
3. An asthma sufferer may ____________ it difficult to breathe.
4. Does your chest regularly ___________ tight?
5. A severe asthma attack may ______________ hospital treatment.
6. People can _______________ asthma at any age.
7. Asthma is an illness which is known to __________ in families.
8. If asthma triggers can be ______________ and _______________, the likelihood of an attack _______________.
9. A preventer is used everyday to ____________ the risk of an attack.
10. If you have asthma, remember to _____________ healthy, and do __________ what you eat.

D. Fill in the gaps with a suitable word
without looking back at the text.

Unfortunately there is still no cure ---_____1______ asthma, although the development ____2_____ new
treatments has _____3_____ to a much better quality ____4_______ life for most sufferers. However,
the number of people ______5_______ diagnosed ____6_____ asthmatic has increased dramatically
_____7_____ the past 20 years. This increase could be _____8______ to environmental or dietary
factors, but _____9_______ the moment researchers are _____10________.

Answers
A.1 tight, 2 tight, 3 tight, 4 tight, 5 wheezes, 6 sticky,7 sticky, 8 badly, 9 badly, 10 badly, 11 badly,12. badly, 13. Contagious, 14 contagious, 15. triggers, 16 trigger, 17 likelihood, 18 make sure,19 leads, 20 cure
B.1) b, f, g 2) c, e 3) d 4) a
C. 1) affects 2) causes 3) find 4) feel 5) require 6) develop 7) run 8) identified, avoided, decreases 9) cut 10) keep, watch.
D. 1) for 2) of 3) led 4) of 5) being 6) as 7) over 8) due 9) for 10) puzzled

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