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Could your child be the one in every ten children who is affected by what is now the most common chronic disease of childhood? Here’s what parents need to know.
Asthma is a health problem that tends to run in families where overly sensitive airways swell, tighten, and produce too much mucus. Who’s at the highest risk of getting asthma? Children who were born premature, live with smokers, or have parents or close family members who have allergies or asthma are more likely to develop the disease. Health experts are still trying to figure out what causes asthma to develop in susceptible children, but asthma seems to result from both a family tendency and exposure to environmental triggers.
About half of children with asthma develop symptoms by age two, and about 80 percent will have symptoms by age five. But detecting asthma in babies and toddlers can be hard. When very young children get certain lung infections, their tiny airways easily fill with mucus. This can lead to the wheezing sound that may sound like asthma but isn’t. instead, look for these symptoms each time your child gets a cold or viral illness:
If you think your child may have asthma, don’t wait. Take them to see a doctor. A medical history, certain breathing tests, and allergy screenings can help decide if treatment is needed.
What is causing the asthma symptoms? Possible culprits include cigarette smoke, dust mites and pets. Allergies are a common trigger for asthma symptoms. If your child has allergies, managing the triggers may lead to fewer asthma problems.
Tips for managing triggers
Work with the doctor to find your child’s allergic triggers. Then talk through ways you can avoid or control them. For example:
How can allergies be treated?
Talk with your child’s doctor about allergy treatments. Options include:
Allergy shots. This treatment is generally reserved for severe allergies when other treatments don’t work. It helps the immune system become less sensitive to allergy-causing items. Regular visits to the doctor’s office are required for at least three years. Children with severe asthma may not be able to take allergy shots.
Originally Published 6/1/2016; Revised 2020, 2022
Hello goto2day, You can visit www.bcbsil.com/.../taking-on-asthma for more information on asthma and the taking on asthma initiative. ~ Kayla
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