Asthma Bronchial Asthma

There is nothing scarier for parents than being awakened by their child struggling to breathe. Asthma is the most common chronic illness among children. Approximately 10 to 12% of American children have asthma. You may wonder exactly what asthma is. It is a medical condition that causes inflammation of the airways. It causes the airways to react excessively which cause more mucous production, swelling of the airways and the muscles used in breathing. All of this can cause obstruction of the airways, a tightness in the chest, coughing and the characteristic wheezing that can be recognized as asthma. Some of the risk factors that may lead a child to develop asthma are: Having allergies A family member with asthma and/or allergies Low birth weight African American Male Growing up in a low income environment Childhood asthma appears to be on the rise and so far there is no definitive answer as to why. One theory is that our kids are not exposed to childhood illness and so havent built up a strong enough immune system. This lack of antibodies. Make them more vulnerable to asthma. Airway inflammation is the one symptom that is found in all asthma patients. The inflammation can be caused by allergies, viral or bacterial infection of the respiratory system. Allergies are the cause of more than 50% of all cases of asthma in the US and 30% of those are due to cat allergies. Second hand smoke is a risk factor for both adults and children. There is some evidence that babies born to …