Health Effects: Asthma (Respiratory)

• What is asthma?
• What is an asthma attack?
• What causes asthma and who is at risk?
• What is a trigger for asthma and how can I prevent exposure?
• Asthma attack triggers
• How does the indoor and outdoor environment affect asthma?
• What is ozone and what does it do?
• How can I prevent asthma attacks and episodes? (next page)
• Asthma hospitalizations in New Mexico (next page)
• Asthma Surveillance (next page)

What is asthma?

• A disease that affects the airways that carry air in and out of the lungs.
• Airways can become irritated and swollen, causing wheezing, coughing and shortness of breath.
• Certain triggers can cause already sensitive airways to tighten and result in an asthma attack.

Asthma is a disease that affects the airways that carry oxygen in and out of the lungs. If you have asthma, the inside of these airways is irritated and swollen. This is called inflammation. The airways are sensitive and more likely to react strongly to infections, allergens, like pollen in the air, or irritants, like smoke and air pollution.

People who have asthma can experience asthma attacks. An asthma attack is a serious problem with breathing. An asthma attack can occur when you are exposed to things in the environment called asthma triggers.

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What is an asthma attack?

• When you have an asthma attack, it's hard to get enough air into and out of your lungs.
• Signs of an attack include tight chest, coughing, wheezing, or trouble breathing.

When you have an asthma attack, it's hard to get enough air into and out of your lungs. During an asthma attack, your chest feels tight and you may cough, wheeze, or have trouble breathing. This happens because your airways get swollen and tight, preventing air from coming in and out of your lungs.

An asthma attack can occur when you are exposed to things in the environment called asthma triggers, such as house dust mites and tobacco smoke. Other common asthma triggers include exercise, air pollution, allergens, and pets.

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What causes asthma and who is at risk?

• The causes of asthma are currently unknown.
• A person can develop asthma at any age.

Asthma affects all races and ages and both males and females. As children, more boys than girls have asthma. As adults, more women have asthma than men.

Although asthma affects people of all ages, it often starts in childhood and is more common in children than in adults.

Asthma is not contagious, you cannot catch asthma from someone else, but children are more likely to get asthma if a parent has asthma, if they were born prematurely, or if there is a smoker in the home. Young children before age three with eczema, allergies like hay fever, or severe viral infections may be more likely to develop asthma.

Symptoms of asthma sometimes decrease with age and treatment. Since the causes are unknown, it's important to manage asthma triggers.

No two people have exactly the same asthma symptoms or outcomes. It is a very individualized disease. The bottom line is to watch your child and listen to their observations. If you suspect asthma, get your child examined and tested by a knowledgeable physician. It can make all the difference.

Asthma risk summary:

• You cannot catch asthma from someone else.
• Children are more likely to get asthma if a parent has asthma.
• Children are more likely to get asthma if they are born prematurely, or if there is a smoker in the home.
• Young children before the age of three with eczema, allergies such as hay fever, or severe viral infections may be more likely to develop asthma.

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What is a trigger for asthma and how can I prevent exposure?

A trigger is simply something you are exposed to that causes an asthma attack. Each person has their own triggers for asthma. It's important that you know what your triggers are. Once you know them, you can begin to avoid them or to work with your doctor to manage them. If your asthma is triggered by allergens such as pollens, molds, the house dust mite, cockroach droppings, or foods, it is important to avoid exposure to them. Clean your home and car regularly to minimize exposure.

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Asthma attack triggers include

• Allergens, such as cockroaches, dust mites, molds, pollens, animal dander, and certain chemicals
• Tobacco smoke
• Exercise
• Foods
• Viral or sinus infections
• Medications
• Emotional anxiety

The most common triggers outdoors are pollen, exercise, pollution, ozone, diesel fuel, and pesticides.

The most effective ways to prevent asthma at home are minimizing dust, cleaning up mold, eliminating irritants, and controlling pet dander.

Diesel fuel emitted from the exhaust of trucks, cars, factories, oil refineries, and machinery can worsen allergy and asthma symptoms and may also increase the risk of developing allergies or asthma. Being in areas near major highways and freeways with traffic congestion can increase risks of an asthma attack.

Pesticides such as lawn or tree sprays, farms and orchards, and other sources of these chemicals in our outdoor environment can worsen asthma and trigger asthma attacks.

Secondhand smoke is a major trigger for asthma attacks. Avoid being around people who are smoking. Do not allow smoking in the home or in the car. A person with asthma also should not smoke. For information on smoking cessation go to www.quitnownm.com. This NM Department of Health Web site has information in English y en español.

Seasonal allergies can trigger asthma, so it's important to work with your doctor to minimize your exposure and or treat these allergies.

For more information about preventing triggers, please go to www.lungusa.org, the American Lung Association Web site, or to www.aaaai.org, the American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology Web site.

Learn more about asthma prevention on the following page.

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How does the indoor and outdoor environment affect asthma?

• Indoor air is one of the biggest triggers for asthma and includes mold, allergens, and tobacco smoke.
• Outdoor air pollution triggers include particle pollution/particulate matter (PM), sulfur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and ozone (O3). Studies also link carbon monoxide (CO) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) to asthma. The outdoor air pollutant most commonly linked to asthma attacks is ozone. Learn more about ozone on the NM EPHT Environmental Exposure Data: Air Quality page.

Air pollution is one problem that strongly contributes to asthma. Air pollution is caused by factories, power plants, cars, and other things that release harmful substances into the air. There are agencies that take daily air quality readings and many newspapers, Web sites, and television programs report these results. As with other airborne irritants, you may want to consider staying inside when the pollution is extremely high. The air quality index (AQI) is an index for reporting daily air quality. By checking the index in your area, you can check the pollution levels in the outdoor air and the possible health effects of this pollution. In large cities that have air pollution problems, the number of emergency department visits for asthma episodes goes up when the air quality is very poor.

Acute asthma attacks can be triggered by indoor and outdoor air pollutants and allergens. The outdoor air pollutant most commonly linked to asthma attacks is ozone – a colorless gas formed when emissions from cars, power plants, and other sources react chemically in the presence of sunlight. Ozone is commonly known as smog. Ozone may worsen chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma. Asthmatics are particularly susceptible to the effects of ozone, which can cause asthma attacks both directly and indirectly. Asthma attacks can result directly from ozone-induced irritation and reduced lung function in the respiratory system. Ozone also increases sensitivity to allergens, which are the most common triggers for asthma attacks. (Allergens come from dust mites, cockroaches, pets, molds, fungus, pollen, and chemicals.)

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What is ozone and what does it do?

Ozone is a colorless gas formed with emissions from cars, power plants, and other sources that react in the presence of sunlight. Airways in the lungs become irritated when exposed to ozone. This results in the lungs not working as well as normal. Ozone also increases the sensitivity to allergens, such as dust mites, pollen, and animal dander.

Remember: If you have asthma, consider staying inside on days when the pollution is bad.

Asthma Prevention: next page