Asthma still kills.

Roughly 3,500 people die from asthma in the U.S. each year. This is not because it’s untreatable, but because it’s misunderstood.

Bad information leads to bad decisions, which can cost you your life.

Here’s what every asthma patient needs to know:

1. Asthma is just a childhood disease

Not even close to true.

Asthma can occur at any time, even in one’s 50s or 60s. One of the biggest triggers is severe viral infections. 

I’ve seen many adults develop asthma-like symptoms after respiratory illnesses, especially post-COVID. That inflammation can lead to scarring in the lungs (fibrosis), which reduces flexibility and makes breathing harder.

Even if you don’t have allergies past age 6, it doesn’t mean you’re immune. 

Adult-onset asthma is real, especially in women who’ve had severe viral infections.

2. Asthma is purely a psychological condition

It’s not all in your head.

Instead, it’s worsened by psychological factors like anxiety, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. What happens is these conditions cause patients to stop taking all their meds, which leads to more asthma symptoms, more panic/depression, and a vicious cycle.

The reality is asthma is an inflammatory disease. Your mood can influence it by making you neglect your medicine, but it doesn’t cause it.

That’s where biologics change the game.

Biologic treatments like Dupixent or Xolair only need to be taken once every 2–4 weeks. No daily inhaler to forget. No wondering if you’re doing enough. 

Just consistent control from a single shot.

They target the same inflammatory pathways responsible for asthma, allergies, and other conditions like eczema and nasal polyps, so they often reduce multiple symptoms at once.

If remembering your meds is a problem, or you’ve been in the ER more than once, ask your allergist if you’re a candidate for a biologic (most insurances will cover it).

3. Less medication means better asthma

This one gets people hospitalized.

I hear so many patients say, “I must be doing better because I’m off all my inhalers!” But that’s not how asthma works. Skipping your controller meds (like inhaled corticosteroids) is a common reason people end up in the ER.

You measure asthma control by lung function, symptoms, and how many steroid bursts you’ve needed, not by how many meds you’ve ditched.

If your asthma is truly under control, your FEV1 will be solid, your sleep will be uninterrupted, and you won’t be gasping after climbing stairs.

4. Inhaled corticosteroids are dangerous

One five-day course of oral steroids has the same systemic impact as 25 years of inhaled steroids.

Yes, you read that correctly. 

Inhaled corticosteroids are delivered directly to your lungs in microgram doses. Oral steroids come in milligrams, which is a hundred times bigger and they flood your whole system. Inhaled meds are designed to stay in your airway and not absorb into the bloodstream.

So yes, pharmacists and even some doctors get this wrong.

5. Asthma can be cured

Unfortunately, there’s no cure (for now).

You can manage asthma. You can reduce symptoms. You might even go years without a flare-up. But once you have it, it’s always there in the background.

Some patients “outgrow” their symptoms in adolescence, only to see them return in their 40s. Biologic medications (like Dupixent or Xolair) show promise, and we’re studying whether they can induce long-term remission. 

A cure awaits to be found.

My best advice is to learn your unique asthma triggers, treat those triggers aggressively when they flare up to avoid inflammation, and keep those lungs in the best shape possible. 

6. All asthma is the same

I wish it were that simple.

Some people wheeze. Others just cough. Some have flare-ups only during allergy season, while others get hit hard with every cold. 

Everyone manifests asthma differently. 

The reason it varies has to do with the huge variety of asthma triggers people can have. They can be anything like an allergy exposure, a cold, cleaning products, and even odors (think strong perfumes).

Because of how varied asthma is, treatment plans must be personalized. You need to sit down with an allergist, figure out what sets you off, and how to stay three steps ahead of it.

7. You can’t die from asthma anymore

Unfortunately, you still can.

While it’s dropped significantly since the 80s because of better anti-inflammatory medicines and patient education, it’s still too high. Roughly 3,500 people die from asthma every year in the U.S.

While that’s less than 5% of all asthma cases, it’s still thousands of lives lost, many of which could have been prevented with proper treatment, education, and early intervention.

If you’ve ever ended up in the ER or ICU for asthma, you are in a high-risk category, and you should talk to your allergist about stepping up your treatment plan.

8. Exercise is dangerous if you have asthma

Exercise is actually helpful.

The real problem is cold, dry air and skipping your rescue inhaler. Take your short-acting bronchodilator 15 minutes before working out, warm up properly, and you’ll reduce your symptoms dramatically.

Even just warming up your body will help you avoid more asthma symptoms in general, and a stronger body means a healthier immune system to help fight those viral infections. 

If you do cardio, it will build up your lung capacity. If you want a guided approach, I recommend going to pulmonary rehab programs to help push harder with less risk.

9. Humidity and steam help you breathe better

Maybe for a few minutes, but as soon as it’s gone, the symptoms come back.

It might help you temporarily if you get some humidity, but it doesn’t treat asthma. Worse, too much humidity can increase mold growth, which is one of the most common asthma triggers.

If you’re running a humidifier, keep it low. Anything higher and you’re creating a petri dish for mold.

10. You should avoid all triggers forever

Avoidance isn’t the answer.

Here’s what happens when you avoid everything: your immune system never learns how to handle anything. Allergy shots (immunotherapy) are one of the most effective ways to reduce asthma severity, especially when started young.

If your child has asthma and allergies, talk to your allergist about starting shots by age 5. They help reduce inflammation, build tolerance, and prevent worsening symptoms long-term.