Mental health and COPD: why we need more research
Over 1 in 3 people with COPD report symptoms of anxiety and depression. Yet, challenges with mental health are often under-recognised and under-treated in people living with chronic lung disease. Dr Lisa Brighton tells us about her important research into ways to support people with COPD and their mental health.
Nancy goes to Downing Street
Ten-year-old Nancy, who has asthma, was delighted to go to No 10 to help hand in our petition calling for the Government to set up a Cleaner Travel Access Fund. Here she tells us what it was like going to Downing Street and why she wanted to support our campaign for cleaner air.
Saving Your Breath: Help us fix respiratory care in the UK
Respiratory care in the UK is in crisis. People with lung conditions are suffering – and even dying - needlessly. That’s why we’ve launched a new campaign to ensure people living with lung conditions get the care and treatment they desperately need. Our CEO, Sarah Woolnough, explains why we need to do more to get the government’s attention, and how you can help.
Improve Glasgow’s buses to tackle toxic air
It may be easy to overlook the power of the humble bus but they’re a vital tool for cleaner air in our cities. There are major issues with Glasgow’s transport system that we urgently need to fix to tackle toxic air in the city. Maddy from the Clean Air team explains why the fight for better buses in Glasgow is a fight for clean air too – and how you can get involved.
Investing in breath: the true cost of lung conditions to the UK economy
Someone dies from a lung condition every five minutes in the UK. And millions more live with debilitating symptoms. Our new report, written with PwC, reveals the huge financial cost of lung conditions to the UK economy. It shows how increased investment in lung health research could lead to huge savings and increased productivity, and protect the future of the NHS.
Why I ran the Great North Run for Asthma + Lung UK
Our supporter, Ricky ran the Great North Run for us this year in memory of his close friend Stevie. Here he tells us why it was so important for him and how he’s helping fight for everyone’s right to breathe.
ULEZ: Protecting future generations from toxic air
Today, the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) expands to cover the whole of Greater London, protecting millions of Londoners from toxic air. This milestone follows the tireless work of thousands of campaigners calling for cleaner air. Olivia, in our clean air team explains the impact the expansion will have on our children who are currently breathing in dangerous levels of air pollution. Plus how we’re helping to raise awareness of air quality around London schools.
Bringing communities together: Asthma and Lung UK’s first Clean Air Campaigner Conference
On Saturday 15 July we hosted our first ever Clean Air Campaigner Conference. We brought together campaigners from Manchester, Glasgow, the West Midlands, West Yorkshire and Liverpool, who care about tackling toxic air pollution in their communities. Sophie from our clean air team shares some of the day’s highlights.
Diagnosing the problem: Lauren’s story
Our latest research shows that people with lung conditions aren’t being diagnosed quickly enough. Lauren, an IT trainer from Nottingham, was diagnosed with asthma in 2010. Here she tells us how difficult it was to get her diagnosis. And we lay out our recommendations to improve diagnosis for lung conditions in the UK.
The next generation of clean air changemakers
At the start of this school year, in September 2022, we launched our pilot project to teach pupils in London schools about the dangers of air pollution. Project lead, Amy talks us through the project and what we’ve achieved in our first year.
Breathing Unequal: what needs to change?
Our latest research showed shocking inequalities in lung health across the UK. Laura from our Policy team tells us more about it and gives our recommendations for tackling it.
Life with a lung condition - how you're helping us push for change
From January to March 2023, we ran our largest ever survey asking you about your care and experiences of living with a lung condition. Anna from our Data + Insights team explains what the survey was and how your responses are helping us fight for better lung health for all.
Leveraging behavioural science to design better asthma health technology
Our research aims to generate improved understanding about asthma self-management behaviours (e.g., adherence, self-monitoring, and healthcare usage) to identify potential areas of unmet need where health technology could offer scalable and effective solutions.
Rebecca’s Story – why I took on the Hula Hoop challenge
Our supporter, Rebecca took part in our Hula Hoop Challenge this year. She hula hooped for 15 minutes every day for 30 days in May. She raised over £200 to support our vital work fighting for lung health. Here she tells us how the memory of dad, Nick inspired her to take on the challenge, and how it helped improve her fitness.
Asthma in the workplace: what our supporters told us
We wanted to find out how out how our supporters manage their asthma at work. We surveyed 2000 of our supporters to find out more about how they handle their asthma at work. Laura from our Policy team talks us through what they told us.
Shining a light on Glasgow’s toxic air through the art of pottery
To celebrate Clean Air Day 2023, Asthma + Lung UK was part of an exciting and thought-provoking project which used the art of pottery to highlight the dangers of Glasgow’s toxic air. Maddy, our Regional Campaigns and Policy Officer, is here to tell you all about Glasgow Smogware.
Loft insulation scams – what you need to know
Over the last few months we’ve been hearing from some of our supporters who have received unsolicited calls from individuals claiming to work for a loft insulation company or an “energy hub”. These have claimed to represent Asthma + Lung UK, or one of our legacy charities, British Lung Foundation. Paul, our Head of Supporter Care tells us more.
End the Lung Health Lottery – the data behind the campaign
You might have seen that we have recently run a campaign to End the Lung Health Lottery. We looked into how lung conditions affect people differently across the UK, and found big differences in outcomes for respiratory conditions in different parts of the country. Here, Andrew from our data + Insights team tells us how we did it, what we want to see, and how you can explore the data we used in the campaign yourself.
Glasgow’s Low Emission Zone: read all about it
Glasgow’s Low Emission Zone (LEZ) will go live on 1 June 2023. If you live or work in Glasgow, you may be wondering what this means for you. Maddy, our Regional Campaigns and Policy Officer lays out what you need to know about the LEZ and why it’s such a vital step towards cleaner air for the city.
Making Britain smoke free
Smoking is one of the biggest causes of preventable illness and death in the UK, is estimated to cause 1 in 4 cancer deaths and causes many lung conditions. The government has recently announced plans to make Britain smoke free by 2030. Laura from our Policy team talks us through the new proposals and what they could mean for lung health in the UK.