Asthma and allergy awareness

Asthma and allergy Awareness

Asthma is a disease. It affects your lungs. The symptoms are: wheezing, breathlessness, tightness of the chest, night time or early morning coughing.

Medicine can help control the symptoms.

An asthma attack is caused by "triggers". Some triggers can include pollen, shellfish, antibiotics, cigarette smoke and /or pets.

These triggers can cause inflammation and obstruction in the lungs.

Asthma and not be cured or prevented.

• 1 in 13 people have asthma.

• Asthma is the 3rd highest reason children under 15 years old are hospitalized.

• Approximately $56 billion a year is spend on medication, office visits, hospitalizations, emergency rooms visit and work/school absenteeism.

A good website is

http://www.cdc.gov/asthma/healthcare.html#guidelines

Food allergies are also a big concern, too.

The week of May 8-14 2016 is Food allergy awareness week.

A food allergy is when the body's immune system thinks a certain food is harmful and reacts to the food.

1 in 13 children have a food allergy. This is about 6 million children.

Food allergies in children have increase about 50% between 1997 and 2011.

There is no cure for food allergies.

A great site to learn more is:

http://www.kidswithfoodallergies.org/page/what-is-a-food-allergy.aspx