The diagnosis of paediatric asthma is confounded by the fact that history is obtained from a caregiver and often, not from the child experiencing the symptoms. This is fraught with the difficulties of perception of the parents. Furthermore, there is increasing recognition that there are several wheezing phenotypes in children, and not just what has been classically known as asthma. These different wheezing phenotypes respond quite differently to current asthma medications. Inhaled glucocorticosteroids are the most effective drugs for treating asthma. However, for viral-induced wheezing,leukotriene receptor antagonists have been shown to reduceasthma exacerbations better than inhaled steroids. The goalof treatment is to achieve control which encompassesadequate drug therapy, patient education and identifying andreducing exposures to risk factors. The GOAL Study hasdemonstrated that it is possible to achieve total control in themajority of patients with adequate treatment. With optimaltreatment, children with asthma can lead a normal life withoutrestrictions.