Controlling
Asthma
Think of someone--a child or an adult--racked by uncontrolled
coughing. With a heaving, distended chest, neck muscles straining,
and eyes showing alarm verging on panic, the person can utter
only a few brief words between rasping, wheezing, frantic efforts
to breathe.
The person puts a tubelike device in his or her mouth and inhales
twice. Within minutes, remarkably it seems, the crisis is over.
Breathing returns to normal. The person can go back to school
or work or even jogging--until the next attack, which might
be hours or months away.
Asthma
in the Child Care Setting
Asthma is a chronic breathing disorder and is the most common
chronic health problem among children. Children with asthma
have attacks of coughing, wheezing, and shortness of breath,
which may be very serious. These symptoms are caused by spasms
of the air passages in the lungs. The air passages swell, become
inflamed, and fill with mucus, making breathing difficult. Many
asthma attacks occur when children get respiratory infections,
including infections caused by common cold viruses.
Cockroaches Important
Cause of Asthma Morbidity Among Inner-City Children
A large study supported by the National Institute of Allergy
and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) has conclusively demonstrated
that the combination of cockroach allergy and exposure to the
insects is an important cause of asthma-related illness and
hospitalizations among children in U.S. inner-city areas.
Asthma
FAQ
Q1. How many Americans have ever had asthma?
A1. The most recently available data is from the 2000 National
Health Interview Survey. Based on the proportion of respondents
who answered "yes" to the question: "Has a doctor
or other health professional ever told you that you had asthma?Ó
it is estimated that 27.6 million people have had a diagnosis
of asthma in their lifetime. This includes 8.9 million children
under age 18 years. Lifetime asthma diagnosis is not a useful
measure of the current public health problem of asthma because
many people diagnosed with asthma earlier in life may no longer
suffer from it or may have it under control.
Molds
and Asthma
Molds can be found almost anywhere; they can grow on virtually
any substance when moisture is present. Outdoors, many molds
live in the soil and play a key role in the breakdown of leaves,
wood, and other plant debris. Without molds we would all be
struggling with large amounts of dead plant matter. Molds break
down plant materials by digesting them, using the plant material
for food.
The Impact of Asthma
After a decade of steady decline in the 1970s, the prevalence
of asthma, hospitalizations for asthma, and death due to asthma
each increased during the 1980s and 1990s. Asthma affects an
estimated 17 million Americans or 6.4 percent of the U.S. population.
Children account for 4.8 million of the nation's asthma sufferers.
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