We’re all used to hearing about the things we should be doing to save the planet: avoid flights, get on our bikes and switch steaks for veggie burgers.

But last week, asthma patients got a different message from the NHS – they should discuss with their doctor changing their medications, partly to avoid using inhalers that release greenhouse gases.

It’s not the first time that patients have been asked to make important medical choices based on their carbon footprint. Women are being told by green campaigners and some doctors they should consider the climate in decisions on whether to bottle feed their babies and even how they give birth.

These efforts are seriously misjudged, and some patients find them downright insulting.

Don’t mistake me for a climate change denialist. The evidence is clear that the world is warming, and a range of actions are needed to slow down this process by governments, public bodies, and individuals too.

NHS activities account for four per cent of the UK’s carbon footprint and if there are ways that this can be reduced without harming patient care, then they should be considered.

Asthma is an obvious place to start, as some treatments require devices known as aerosol inhalers, which use hydrofluoroalkane gases for delivering a puff of medicine into the lungs. These happen to be potent greenhouse gases.

Luckily, many of the worst-offending devices are what are known as “rescue inhalers”, which doctors were turning away from anyway. They give quick relief of an asthma attack by opening up the airways, but don’t achieve good long-term asthma control.

New guidelines this week issued jointly by several NHS bodies advise switching........

© iNews