Dear Marion:   The cause of asthma has not be completely agreed upon. There are some "risk factors" and exposures that may help asthma become a reality if an individual has a predisposition for asthma. Poor air quality might be the thing that has caused your asthma to appear. To determine if it is the true cause is not able to be done at this time.   Asthma is not just a kids disease. Asthma can be diagnosed at any age. Sometimes the diagnosis comes later in life because of better diagnosing methods, sometimes it is because an individual has truly developed asthma at that age.   Since you have recently been diagnosed with your asthma, I encourage you to educate yourself as much as possible about asthma, your medications and the plan (asthma action plan) that you and your provider agree on. Understand the things that cause your asthma to get worse (triggers). Most of all, remember, asthma should not control you - you should be in control of your asthma. Controlled asthma can be one of the greatest gifts you can give to yourself.   Breathe Easy Gerri Rivers, AE-C