Within three weeks of using the tablets my terrible cough had completely cleared up and I was able to stop using my inhaler

Asthma sufferer Elizabeth Rogerson

The findings will also be of benefit to those with eczema and eye conditions.

Professor Brian Lipworth, who has been leading the team of scientists, said: "We have found that if you combine daily doses of anti-allergy and anti-histamine tablets you can get the same results as using the current steroid treatment.

"This new treatment offers patients an effective alternative and one that many might prefer.

"Taking two tablets is a lot easier than administering the current sprays and inhalers."

The Scottish research team was the first to prove that combining the two types of medication together was effective in treating the conditions.

The tablets, which have been prescribed individually to sufferers for some time, work by blocking the body's reaction to allergies.

Improvement in condition

The research carried out in Dundee involved 40 asthma and hay fever sufferers who were split into two groups.

Half received the new combination of drugs and the other half were given a placebo treatment.

Professor John Warner predicts an asthma vaccine

Those taking the drugs experienced a 60% improvement in their condition compared with normal treatments.

Asthma sufferer Elizabeth Rogerson, from Tayport in Fife, said: "The treatment given to me by Professor Lipworth and his team has given me back my previous quality of life.

"Within three weeks of using the tablets my terrible cough had completely cleared up and I was able to stop using my inhaler. Now I am able to go on cycle rides and not even need to use it."

Southampton research

We hope that within 10 years inoculations will prevent asthma occurring in the first place

Professor John Warner, Southampton General Hospital

Professor John Warner of the Department of Child Health at Southampton General Hospital told a press conference in the city the new inoculation would be tested on babies as early as next year.

He explained that the technique, never before tried on babies, worked by introducing small amounts of naturally-occurring bacteria into the bowel, switching off allergic reactions.

Over the last 10 years Professor Warner and his research team have collected data about allergy sufferers from 700 families in the area.

They discovered that because of our obsession with hygiene, Westerners routinely destroy bacteria which help regulate the immune systems of new-born babies.

The breakthrough centres on a molecule present in bacteria cells called CD14.

Professor Warner said most new-born babies had an allergic tendency but after birth it should switch to normal immune response.

Introducing bacteria into the baby's system could help "kick-start" the immune system.

Professor Warner said: "If it has not been primed properly it therefore misfires.

"We hope that within 10 years inoculations will prevent asthma occurring in the first place."