Asthma is common. But the disease can also be triggered by thunderstorms. This is behind the mysterious illness.
Kassel – Asthma is a widespread disease in Germany. Loud healthy.bund.de 10 percent of all children and 5 percent of adults are affected by the respiratory disease. Usually it is congenital, but it can also be caused by external factors caused by mold, among other things. But in addition to the typical asthma disease, there is also another form. This phenomenon is called thunderstorm asthma and can even be fatal.
Thunderstorm Asthma: Symptoms Occur Shortly After Thunderstorms – Two Trigger Theories
The good news first: thunderstorm asthma is very rare and has hardly ever occurred in Germany allergieinformationsdienst.de enlightens. The disease is characterized by severe asthma attacks or severe inflammation of the nasal mucosa, which causes problems when breathing through the nose. The special thing about it: the symptoms appear between 20 minutes and half an hour after a thunderstorm. Thunderstorms have increased in the last few days across Germany when the persistent heat erupted in severe storms.
Experts speculate that when the pollen season coincides with a thunderstorm, this can be the trigger for thunderstorm asthma. Researchers have not yet agreed on the causes. One theory assumes that pollen and fungal spores are whirled up, which then burst and become more pulmonary. The particles can penetrate into particularly deep areas of the bronchi. These then intensify hay fever and asthma symptoms, or can even trigger them in the first place.
A second approach assumes that the pollen are slightly opened during thunderstorms. In this state, they can settle more easily on the mucous membranes and release allergens more quickly.
Pollen, allergens and coarse particles could trigger thunderstorm asthma
In addition, during a thunderstorm, the pollen is quickly transported close to the ground by strong downwind winds. And not only pollen and allergens are in the air during a storm, other coarser particles, such as from soil, bacteria and mold spores can also be found there. It is assumed that this particle mixture of allergens and other irritating substances is responsible for thunderstorm asthma.
Above all People suffering from hay fever or poorly managed asthma are risk candidates for thunderstorm asthma. However, it can also occur in non-asthmatic people, but this is undetected asthma.
Protection against thunderstorm asthma: stay indoors in bad weather
Even if thunderstorm asthma has hardly ever occurred in Germany, people with hay fever and allergic asthma can protect themselves from the disease. Finding out about the current pollen count and staying indoors during thunderstorms can help. Is it already too late and pollen is already in the apartment, these tips may help.