El asthma is a chronic disease that in Canary Islands affects more than 300.000 people, and whose prevalence is higher than that of the rest of Spain reaching figures of an 18% of the young population according to recent studies.
A few months ago, a study revealed that canaries are genetically conditioned to suffer certain diseases. Apart from this fact, which for many cases is key, the subtropical climate with high humidity that we have in the archipelago, being stable throughout the year, favors the development of dust mites. This causes allergy levels to be very high on the islands. Furthermore, it has been shown that sensitization to mites increases the risk for the development of allergic asthma. The levels of sensitivity to mites observed in Canary Islands are of the 21,7 percent, while in the rest of Spain they are between 4,8 and 17,5 percent.
Likewise, the bronchial hyperactivity index in Canary Islands is one of the highest in Europe and, in addition, coincides with the high prevalence of symptoms related to asthma and high sensitivity to mites.
The day May 7 Is celebrated the World Asthma Day as an initiative to make the population aware of the burdens that the disease poses to those who suffer from it and the possibility of having it under control, leading a healthy life without limitations.
From 2008 to the present, the motto has been "You can control your asthma" and it aims to encourage patients to take an active part in managing their disease.
This year the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) uses the word STOP with its international symbol to tell us that we have to stop asthma. The word STOP is composed of the acronyms of a series of words that give the keys to how to stop or control asthma:
Ssymptoms (to be assessed)
Tbe the response that is obtained with medication and environmental measures
OPreserve and evaluate the patient continuously
PFollow to adjust the treatment and environmental control measures