No One Can Be Allergic To Smoke
Jacksonville, Florida
Wednesday, May 09, 2007 @ 09:48 AM EDT
by: Odette Struys
Phone: (904) 232-4186
ostruys@nemours.org
Nemours offers tips on keeping children with chronic conditions healthy during this smoky period
Nemours, one of the nation’s largest children’s health systems, advises parents with children who suffer from chronic conditions like asthma and allergies, to limit the time their children spend outdoors during this smoky period in North Florida.
The smoke generated from wild fires in Georgia has caused potent irritants and particles to fill our air (smog/haze). “No one can be allergic to smoke, but for patients who have existing chronic conditions like allergies and asthma, the smoke on top of their condition inflames the situation,” said Hary Katz, MD,
allergy and immunology pediatrician at Nemours Children’s Clinic.
“Allergies are nothing to sneeze at, and if your child has allergies, he or she is not alone. In fact, nearly two million kids in the United States have some type of allergy,” said Dr. Katz. “The smoke doesn’t help but it’s a trigger for making breathing more challenging for chronic patients.”
Nemours advises for days when air quality is poor:
- Run the air conditioning
- Limit your child's time outside
- Plan any outdoor activities for early in the day - when air quality tends to be better
- Avoid spending time in areas where there is a lot of traffic.
Twenty-three percent of the population of the United States, including 500,000 children with asthma, live in areas with levels of particle pollution that are unhealthy year-round. In addition to ozone and particle pollution, other pollutants include gases such as carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide. High levels of these gases can also affect lung function.
How Poor Air Quality Affects People With Asthma
Air pollution is a problem for everyone - not just people with asthma. Studies have shown that high levels of air pollution can be associated with decreased lung function and more frequent reports of respiratory symptoms. This is especially true for people who spend a lot of time outdoors.
According to Nemours, children may be particularly affected by pollution levels because they:
- Play outdoors
- Have faster breathing rates
- Have lungs that are still developing.
Although high levels of pollution affect everyone, people with asthma are more sensitive and experience the effects more quickly and severely. Additional studies have shown that ozone, particle pollution, and other forms of air pollution worsen asthma and increase hospital visits for people with asthma. Again, it's children with asthma that are especially vulnerable to these effects.
According to experts at Nemours, pollutants in the air have the same effect on people with asthma as other triggers:
- They reduce lung function by inflaming the lining of the airways within the lungs.
- Exposure to pollutants in the air can cause flare-ups and may increase the chance of upper respiratory infections, which can worsen asthma symptoms.
- If allergens in the air are an asthma trigger, pollutants can make the lungs even more sensitive to them.
What You Can Do
An important aspect of managing your child's asthma or chronic breathing condition is avoiding triggers. That means you should pay attention to pollution levels and plan accordingly when they're going to be high.
The Air Quality Index (AQI) was created by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to monitor outdoor air quality. Using a color-coded system, the Air Quality Index indicates when air quality is dangerous for your child. Green or yellow are acceptable colors, and orange, purple, or maroon mean your child should limit his or her time outdoors.
The Air Quality Index varies from season to season, from day to day, and even from morning to evening. In many places, the next day's index is reported, so you can make plans. You can obtain Air Quality Index information:
- From weather reports
- In the newspaper
- At www.airnow.gov
Improving Indoor Air Quality
Maintaining good indoor air quality in your home is an important aspect of asthma management. Irritants in the air such as tobacco or wood smoke, perfumes, aerosol sprays, cleaning products, and fumes from paint or cooking gas can all trigger asthma flare-ups. Even scented candles or fresh newsprint are triggers for some people with asthma.
Air pollution, outdoor mold, and pollen are also common triggers that can travel inside, especially if you leave your windows and doors open in warmer weather. To maintain good air quality inside your home:
- Don't allow people to smoke in your home. If you smoke, quit or smoke outside
- Avoid wood fires
- Switch to unscented or non aerosol versions of household cleaning products and avoid scented candles or room fresheners
- Make sure that all gas appliances vent to the outdoors
- Choose an artificial tree at holiday time
- Run the air conditioning, especially on days when the pollen or mold counts are high or when there are ozone or pollution warnings
- Change your air conditioning filter regularly
- When purchasing a home, consider buying one with baseboard or radiant heating. Forced-air systems can foster mold and dust mites. If you live in a home with a forced-air system, you might want to seal off the vents in your child's bedroom with aluminum covers and tape. You'll also want to have the other air ducts in the house cleaned and change the air filter in your furnace regularly
- If you must open up your house on days when the pollen count is high, do so after midmorning, because counts are usually highest between 5 AM and 10 AM. If air quality is the problem, open doors and windows in the early morning hours before pollution has had a chance to build up.
If you try all these measures, but you remain concerned about the air quality in your home, you might want to purchase an air cleaner with a HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) filter for your child's bedroom or playroom to help clean the air. Central air filtration systems are also available, although they're much more expensive.
“Taking precautionary measures especially during this smoky period we are experiencing today in North Florida will help your child deal with his or her chronic asthma condition or allergies,” said Dr. Katz.
Related Articles:
For articles written for parents, kids, and teens relating to allergies and asthma, visit:
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FOR KIDS
FOR TEENS
modified: Thursday, March 20, 2008 @ 02:33 PM EDT
created: Monday, August 06, 2007 @ 09:49 AM EDT
About Nemours
Nemours, one of the nation’s largest pediatric health systems, is dedicated to achieving higher standards in children’s health. Nemours offers an integrated spectrum of clinical treatment coupled with research, advocacy, and educational health and prevention services extending to all families in the communities it serves. Starting with Alfred I. duPont’s bequest over seventy years ago, Nemours has grown into a multi-dimensional organization offering personalized clinical and preventive care focused on children.
Nemours owns and operates the Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, Delaware and major children’s specialty clinics in Delaware (Wilmington), Florida (Jacksonville, Orlando and Pensacola), Pennsylvania (Philadelphia and Bryn Mawr) and New Jersey (Atlantic City and Voorhees). Having recently received preliminary approval from the State of Florida, Nemours will establish a new full-service children’s hospital as part of an integrated pediatric health campus in Orlando. KidsHealth.org, the world’s most visited pediatric health care Web site for parents, kids and teens, is a project of Nemours.
Nemours employs over 4,400 individuals, including 430 pediatric physicians, specialists and surgeons who cared for approximately a quarter of a million children in 2007. The organization’s goal is to align with parents, physicians, community leaders, children’s advocates and elected officials to ensure optimal wellness for every child. Additional information about Nemours can be found at www.nemours.org.
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