A change in asthma inhalers

Inhalers, also known as ‘puffers’, are the most common medication prescribed by doctors to help you control your asthma.

There are an estimated 5.2 million people in the UK currently receiving treatment for asthma. That is as many as one person in every 5 households in the UK, and over this year certain asthma inhalers containing chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) are to be phased out and replaced. Many inhalers are already CFC-free, but it is important to know how any changes may affect you.

CFCs were used as coolants in fridges, solvents and propellants in aerosols and are currently used as propellants in certain asthma inhalers. In asthma inhalers they have no medicinal properties – instead they create the plume of medicine that people breathe in to help them control their asthma. CFCs are not harmful to people in these quantities, but once released into the atmosphere they can destroy the ozone layer that protects the earth from certain rays of the sun. This is why some specific inhalers are being phased out and replaced by others.

This website has been set up to help you find out more about your inhaler(s), whether you will need to change your current inhaler(s) and what you can do to make the transition as easy as possible.