Asthma On The Rise
This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who is truly “aware” , but last month our local newspaper reported on the increase in asthma in children. That was something I’ve noticed over the past few years just from personal observation and reading. But it seems the media isn’t really paid to think so they just found out.
The report citedreally information from the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America and said that San Antonio ranked No. 11 this year (2007) on its list of “asthma capitals”.
The article was written from the standpoint of what it is costing the schools. As in, they get their state funding based upon attendance. Plus the schools now have a supply of nebulizers in their nurse’s office.
It did mention some of the things that the school districts are doing to try to help the children with asthma. Mostly removing these asthma triggers and agents that can harbor asthma triggers: stuffed animals, pillows, pets, deodorizing sprays, aerosols, candles, carpeting. But it likely isn’t near far enough.
I actually graduated from one of the schools mentioned in the article. I was back there for an alumni event a few years back. There was a strong scent of fragrance that I believe came from the cleaners used in the building. I left there with a migraine. It’s no wonder there are more kids with asthma.
I suspect that the school districts may not realize that fragrances are in all those cleaners. I actually encountered such thinking when I still worked in the “real” world. This was after I began having migraines 24/7. I somewhat got the attention of management although their primary goal seemed to prove me wrong. I actually had one person tell me that the cleaners that were used did not contain fragrance. She showed me the label which did not list fragrance as an ingredient. Of course it didn’t. It wasn’t required by law to list fragrance. But, what exactly did she think “Fresh Clean Scent” on the label meant?
How is your children’s school? You may want to inquire about the chemical cleaners they use.
