Breathing exercises may help people with asthma, according to new research. But exercises aren’t a substitute for medicines. It’s important that people with asthma use the inhalers prescribed by their doctor.

What do we know already?

Asthma is a common condition that causes breathing problems. It’s treated by breathing in drugs called corticosteroids, and by taking 'reliever' medicine that helps the airways in the lungs to relax. Generally, these treatments work well. But some people still get symptoms of breathlessness or wheezing.

Researchers are looking again at a type of treatment that was used before the drugs became available. This involves being taught ways of breathing that help avoid breathlessness. These include breathing through the nose instead of the mouth, not breathing too quickly, and using the right muscles to control your breathing. The training is usually done by a physiotherapist.

There’s some evidence to show these exercises can be helpful, but the research isn’t clear. Researchers ran a new study to see what effect breathing training had on people who were taking medicine but were still troubled by asthma symptoms.

What does the new study say?

People who had breathing training had a better quality of life, six months after the training, compared to people who did not have the training. They were less anxious, had fewer symptoms of asthma, and were better able to get on with activities.

However, they still needed to use their inhalers regularly. The breathing training didn’t stop their airways from getting inflamed and reacting to allergens such as pollen.

How reliable are the findings?

The findings are likely to be fairly reliable. This was a randomised controlled study, which is the best type of study to see if a treatment works. However, quite a lot of people dropped out of the study, or didn’t fill in the questionnaire after six months. So we only have results from 63 people who did breathing training, and 66 people who did not. A bigger study might have been more reliable.

Where does the study come from?

The study was carried out among patients at GP surgeries in Leicester. It was overseen by doctors at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland. It was published in Thorax, a medical journal owned by the British Medical Association. The charity Asthma UK funded the study.

What does this mean for me?

The study means that some people with asthma may benefit from having breathing training from a physiotherapist. However, breathing training isn’t a substitute for asthma medication. You’ll still need to keep using the inhaler prescribed by your doctor.

What should I do now?

If you have asthma and you still get symptoms like breathlessness or wheezing, make an appointment to talk to your GP or asthma nurse. You may need to have your medicine adjusted. You could also ask about breathing training with a physiotherapist.

From:

From: Thomas M, McKinley RK, Mellor S, et al. Breathing exercises for asthma: a randomised controlled trial. Thorax. Published online: 2 December 2008.

To find out more about asthma treatments, see our information on asthma in adults and asthma in children.