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This year's theme is "Asthma Education Empowers". It is organized annually by the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) in cooperation with the World Health Organization (WHO) with the aim of increasing awareness of this disease. GINA works with healthcare professionals and public health officials around the world to work together to reduce asthma prevalence, morbidity and mortality. Although the initiative aims to be a global player, recommendations for asthma care need to be adapted to local conditions, available financial resources and services. Communication between patients and health care providers about what is best for asthmatics in the given conditions is also important.

Many factors contribute to the development of the disease. For example, a genetically determined predisposition of the mucous membrane of the respiratory tract reacting with inflammation to various triggers such as allergens, chemical and physical substances, microorganisms or infections. However, the internal environment of houses and apartments can also be risky. Many households use gas appliances for heating and cooking. Burning gas in poorly ventilated areas can be risky for human health. Nitrogen dioxide NO₂ is an odorless gas that can irritate the eyes, nose and throat and can cause shortness of breath. Indoor allergens and irritants play a significant role. They can be triggers for asthma attacks. In asthmatics, even exposure to low levels of NO₂ can cause increased bronchial reactivity.

Smoke from burning solid fuels in homes contains a mixture of harmful gases and small dust particles. Inhaling them can cause an asthma attack, bronchitis, worsen heart and lung diseases and can increase the likelihood of respiratory diseases. Therefore, it is important to pay sufficient attention to proper heating - use the fuel recommended by the equipment manufacturer, heat with sufficiently dried wood, and have the heating equipment and chimney inspected by a certified expert every year. You should also consider replacing the old heating equipment, new combustion equipment in eco-design is much more efficient and will help make every home healthier and safer. Last but not least, they reduce the cost of buying fuel.

In October 2018, the World Health Organization published a report that more than 90 percent of children under the age of 15 breathe toxic air every day. Children are more sensitive to the effects of air pollution also because, in addition to running and playing, they breathe faster than adults and thus absorb more pollutants into the body. Their breathing zone is closer to the ground, where some pollutants reach their highest concentrations. Air pollution damages their lung function even at lower levels of exposure.

The most common cause of asthma is allergies, but the disease is also related to genetic predisposition, lifestyle and environmental influences. Scientific research published in 2019 in The Lancet Planetary Health magazine draws attention to it. Research warns that one in five cases of childhood asthma in the UK is caused by air pollution from traffic. According to scientists, emissions from cars and other means of transport damage the respiratory tract. They create inflammation in them, which later develops asthma in children who have a genetic predisposition to it. There are more pollutants in such polluted air, but it is assumed that asthma can be mainly triggered by nitrogen dioxide NO₂. NO₂ pollution is a significant risk factor for asthma in children living in urban areas with heavy traffic.

In November 2019, Mrs. Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah from London also participated in the prestigious Clean Air Forum event in Bratislava with a campaign for cleaner air for children. She herself started supporting the campaign for cleaner air for children after her daughter Ella died from the effects of air pollution from traffic. The girl was exposed to high levels of NO₂ and particulate matter between 2010 and 2013 because her family lived 25 meters from one of London's busiest junctions. If little Ella's family had information in advance about the impact of traffic pollution on her health, they would definitely have moved from such an exposed location. The main source of air pollution was emissions from transport, which in the mentioned period significantly exceeded the values ​​determined by the WHO, the European Union and British national legislation for the protection of human health.

In December 2020, a London court confirmed that air pollution significantly contributed to the death of her daughter, who had a rare type of acute asthma. Ella was particularly sensitive to toxic gases and particles polluting the air. Her death certificate lists acute respiratory failure, severe asthma and exposure to polluted air as causes of death. Mrs. Kissi-Debrah described air pollution as a threat to public health and called for spreading awareness about this serious health threat. In cities where three out of four Europeans live, road traffic is often the main source of air pollution. Vehicles emit pollutants right in our breathing zone. Children are regularly exposed to polluted air on their way to and from school. It can be increased concentrations of nitrogen oxides (NO_X), dust particles (PM₁₀, PM_2.5) and benzene (C₆H₆), which also come mainly from traffic.