1 August 2017
NZ celebrities support Breathe Better September
“Over 700,000 Kiwis have a respiratory condition, it’s the third leading cause of death and costs the country $6 billion
each year,” says Letitia O’Dwyer, Chief Executive from the Asthma and Respiratory Foundation NZ.
Respiratory conditions such as asthma affect so many New Zealanders, so it’s no wonder that the Asthma and Respiratory
Foundation NZ’s inaugural 2016 campaign Breathe Better September gained a huge amount of support and following.
It’s back and even better this year, launching on 1 September with two high profile celebrity ambassadors backing the
cause. Erin Simpson (TV personality) and Issac Luke (rugby league player) will share their asthma experiences and what
they learnt through social media videos.
“By having celebrity ambassadors speak about their experiences, we want to show that asthma and respiratory conditions
don’t have to hold you back,” says O’Dwyer.
“Breathe Better September encourages Kiwis to start thinking about how they can improve their respiratory health, and
information will be shared throughout the month to support this,” says O’Dwyer.
In New Zealand over 521,000 people take medication for asthma, making it the most common respiratory condition in the
country.
Respiratory disease includes asthma, bronchiectasis, bronchiolitis, pneumonia, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
(COPD), lung cancer and obstructive sleep apnoea.
ENDS