'Sniffing a lemon can help stave off asthma'

Sniffing a lemon could help beat asthma, scientists have discovered.

They found that in rats, symptoms vanished after the animals inhaled a chemical that helps give lemons their smell.

Scientists hope it could lead to new treatments for asthma, which affects

5.2 million people in Britain, and costs the NHS ?889 million a year.

The chemical, limonene, "significantly prevented" asthma symptoms in rats, a study at New Technion University in Israel found.

Scientists believe limonene's ability to soak up ozone, which has been linked to asthma, could be key to its beneficial effect.