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Asthma treatment: 3 steps to better asthma control

1. Follow your asthma action plan

Your health care team may work with you to create a written asthma action plan. This plan tells you how to make decisions every day and when to take your medicines. Following this plan is key to controlling your asthma.

A plan has three parts with color codes:

  • Green. The green zone of the plan is for times you are feeling well and have no asthma symptoms. The plan tells you what dose of long-term control medicine to take every day. It also tells you how many puffs of a quick-relief inhaler to take before you exercise.
  • Yellow. The yellow zone tells you what to do if you have symptoms. It explains when to use a quick-relief inhaler and how many puffs to take. It also describes what to do if your symptoms don't improve and when to call your care team.
  • Red. The red zone tells you when to get emergency care if symptoms don't improve or if they worsen.