BACKGROUND: While an estimated 17 million Americans
have asthma, about 5 million of them are children, according to the
American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. Asthma is a lung
disease in which airflow may be blocked by muscle squeezing,
swelling and excess mucus. According to the Childhood Asthma
Foundation, the disease is the number one cause of emergency room
visits and the leading cause of missed school days, totaling 10
million absences annually. Childhood asthma is often misdiagnosed
because symptoms such as wheezing, shortness of breath and coughing
can be confused with those of respiratory infections. After a
diagnosis, medications such as inhalers or pills may be prescribed.
Inhalers, such as bronchodilators, work by opening airways, while
some pills block the action of asthma-causing chemicals. Along with
having to take medications daily, asthmatics often face adverse,
long-term side effects, which include drowsiness, dehydration,
irritability and nervousness. Because some medications contain
steroids, some studies report stunted growth among children as a
side effect.
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