LIVING WITH ASTHMA
"The sound of that cough is burned in my brain," said Backus, who says that she often stops parents out in public when she hears that sound. That could be because childhood asthma is on the rise, with the number of those afflicted doubling in the last decade. The American Lung Association reports that asthma is the most common chronic disorder in children, affecting about 6.2 million under 18.
For Backus, 8-year-old son David's recurring battle with croup prompted her to have him seen by a lung specialist, and he was diagnosed with asthma when he was 4. With John, 4, it was a "constant, dry, incessant cough" that would last a couple of days.
"His flare-ups are few. We're on top of it if he starts to cough," she said.
Only one, 14-month-old Joe, displayed the wheezing most often attributed to asthma. He was diagnosed early, at 4 months, because of his family history.
Older sister Rebecca, 11, is fortunate to be asthma-free.
HOW TO SPOT ASTHMA
Backus said it is important for parents to recognize the many symptoms of asthma and to maintain continuity of care with a physician to correctly diagnose a chronic illness.
"If a child has a virus that doesn't go away, the parent or doctor needs to piece it together. I'm more aware because I live with it," she said.
Other points Backus makes are:
- Bronchitis is not common in children.
- If your child has colds constantly, question it.
- A chronic unexplained cough, especially at night or with exercise, is a common symptom of asthma.
- If your child can't run or keep up with other children, is wheezy, or out of breath, that's a red flag.
- Repeated episodes of bronchiolitis (infectious disease of the lower respiratory tract, primarily in infants, that affects the tiny airways called bronchioles) in an infant could be asthma.
- Asthma is in the lungs, allergies are typically concentrated in the nose and throat, but kids with allergies are very susceptible to asthma. Triggers of asthma attacks and allergies, such as smoke and perfumes, are often the same.
- Children of smokers are more susceptible to asthma.
- If asthma is untreated, children with it often vomit when they exercise.
ASTHMA EPIDEMIC
Why the rise in childhood asthma?
Backus said asthma is more prevalent in industrialized areas because of pollutants in the air. Country kids are less likely to have it. She said another idea is the "too-clean" theory, meaning we have become too clean for our own good so that kids later become hypersensitive to them and develop asthma. Also, she said, our homes are now airtight. Sometimes it's a good idea to let the air flow through open windows.
Timken (Ohio) High School physical education teacher and softball coach Cheryl Morse has been at the school for 12 years and said she is seeing five or six kids with asthma in each class.
"I have never seen more kids with inhalers in my life," she said. "It's definitely on the increase, but we don't change the curriculum because of it."
In fact, kids with asthma are required to run the mile just like everyone else.
"We make sure they have their inhalers and we honor doctors' notes regarding their limitations, but they still have to do it. We allow them to walk-jog," she said.
Coaches and teachers are adept at detecting if a child is using asthma as an excuse to be lazy.
"I just tell them, Do the best you can, but you're still required to run the mile. My sister has asthma. A lot of professional athletes have asthma. You will build your endurance if you just try,' " Morse explained. Backus agrees, adding that if the asthma is well-controlled, kids can do anything they want - swim, ride bikes, run track.
"It breaks my heart when I hear parents tell their kids to slow down, not run," she said. "They should act like kids. Be kids. If asthma is restricting a child's activity, they need their asthma worked on."
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