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DR HILARY'S DIAGNOSIS

Asthma tends to run in families, but the risks are greater if both parents have asthma.

If Julie’s children haven’t been affected by now, at the ages of four and two, chances are they’ve escaped it.

Usually by then, ordinary cold and cough viruses will have triggered early asthma symptoms.

These include a persistent dry cough at night, coughing or wheezing during exercise, and shortness of breath during physical activity or in cold weather.

The attack Julie had in Greece was one of the unpredictable allergic reactions that people with asthma can suffer.

Using a peak-flow meter, which you breathe into to check the rate at which air is blown out of your lungs, can indicate the efficiency of the lungs.

But regular use of her preventer inhaler should stop an attack anyway.

Exercise is advisable because it establishes efficient respiratory muscles and breathing techniques.

‘Will my kids inherit my asthma?’

EVERY WEEK A CELEB ASKS OUR FABULOUS DOCTOR FOR A DIAGNOSIS. THIS WEEK IT’S ACTRESS JULIE GRAHAM, 43

I’ve suffered from asthma since I was a teenager.

It can be hard for me to breathe – my chest tightens, I start to wheeze, and I need a puff on my inhaler to help me breathe normally again.

I’m fortunate because my asthma’s quite mild and manageable, and it hasn’t hampered my career.

But there was an incident when I thought I was going to die from it while I was on holiday in Greece a few years ago.

I’d gone with a friend to a nightclub where I’d drunk some blackcurrant cordial.

I suffered a severe allergic reaction to it, which turned into a serious asthma attack.

My breathing got so bad, I began to panic.

I could feel my chest getting tighter, like I was suffocating, and the more stressed I got, the worse my condition became.

We called an emergency doctor and the steroid injection he gave me kicked in almost immediately, which meant I could breathe more easily again.

I avoid using my inhaler unless I have to.

Giving up smoking has made a difference and I also do Pilates, which I find helps my breathing and keeps me fit, relaxed and free from stress.

My great fear is that my daughters (Edie, four, and Cyd, two) will become asthmatic.

Their father Joseph isn’t a sufferer but is it something they could inherit from me?

And what can I do to avoid another serious attack?

For more information go to Asthma.org.uk. Julie stars in Bonekickers, Tuesdays, 9pm, BBC1.

Words: Tim Oglethorpe photography: rex

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