*4.3. Emerging Research Interests*

Realizing the growing importance of asthma control in improving quality of life of people with asthma at a population level, one of the emerging research domains that has attracted much attention from researchers in recent years is asthma control and education interventions for asthmatics (Topic 1—Table 3, Figure 3). Aside from clinical history and manifestations, namely experience of near-fatal asthma, sensitivity to mold and other allergens, and comorbidities with other respiratory diseases and infections, poor management and control of asthma has been reported to be responsible for a large number of asthma exacerbation and asthma-related preventable deaths [4,31–39]. Whilst understanding of the pathophysiology, diagnosis and treatment of asthma has been well-established (Figure 2), research on controlling the distribution of asthmatics and how to increase their access to appropriate and high-quality interventions for better quality of life remains relatively scarce. Despite the development of various medications and interventions to improve the quality of life of asthmatics, asthma management and control, especially in developing countries, has been facing such barriers as unaffordability of inhaled corticosteroids, inadequate education on asthma for the general population and poor infrastructure, which frequently leads to lack of adherence to treatment as well as lack of appropriate and prompt actions in case of asthma attack [4,38,40,41]. Self-management, including the use of healthy diet and physical exercises (Topic 3), is also an important component of asthma management [42–45]. Although studies have demonstrated the association between food allergy and pathogenesis of asthma, and dietary factors are reported to directly influence asthma outcomes regardless of level of allergy, a number of people suffering from asthma and their caregivers have not yet been made aware of the importance of a healthy and appropriate diet [31,44,46–48]. Meanwhile, exercise showed positive effects on asthma control and can be recommended for children and young adults [43,49]. Given that a person best understands his or her allergy and physical status, self-management, considering diet and exercise, therefore plays an important role in alleviating asthma symptoms and improving quality of life.
