Statistics show that approximately two weeks after Labor Day there is a peak day for hospitalizations and ER visits due to asthma episodes. We are suggesting you what to do.
Back to school is a reality that puts to rest the summer holidays.
We still have a window of happiness with Labor Day, the last long weekend before we mean business as usual.
However, an unusual date is lurking in the calendar for all who suffer from allergy and asthma.
Statistics show that approximately two weeks after Labor Day is the peak day for hospitalizations and ER visits due to asthma episodes. We are bringing attention to it, not because it’s a curse, nor to suggest that school is the culprit, but because it has its own chain of factors that provoke the ‘epidemic’.
To know them, will help.
Asthma is a chronic disease that causes inflammation of respiratory airways; however environmental allergens may exacerbate the flares.
What happens in September is that children are exposed to all potential triggers upon going back to school and being in their classrooms.
Indoor Allergens
- dust, dust mites and mold
- pet dander: friends, teachers and school personnel who own pets are free carriers of pet dander
- cockroaches and mice
- chalk dust
- viral infections: children are forced to extended hours of indoor environment. Close contact facilitates subsequent exposure to colds or viruses that may affect student’s immune systems.
Outdoor Allergens
- air pollution
- environmental irritants (such as disinfectants)
- outdoor exercise (exercise induced asthma)
- fall allergies like ragweed and pollen
Reasons you should read the daily pollen count if you suffer from allergic rhinitis…
Monitoring the daily count and the weather forecast support the allergic patient and help them with the prevention of unwanted symptoms.
What one is allergic to is not the visible yellow dust that deposits on car’s windshields, but the invisible particles produced by grasses and trees.
When inhaled by the allergic patient, those particles irritate the respiratory ducts and cause allergy symptoms such as eye redness, trouble breathing and nose running commonly known as hay fever.
Prescribed medications and pollen awareness are preventative measures to diminish asthma attacks.
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What to do?
→ If your child is diagnosed with allergies and/or asthma and under the cure of a specialist:
- knowledge, awareness, information and preparation are key factors
- have all prescription medications and epinephrine auto-injector up to date,
- control the environment
- maintain prescribed medications intake. It’s a mistake dropping the use of medications during the summer months when a child gets better.
- avoid exposure
→ If you suspect your child may suffer from respiratory ailments such as allergies and asthma
- it’s time to consider getting him/her tested by the allergist.
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