About Asthma

More Information

Cartoon picture of children playing in a community.

May 5th is World Asthma Day

Parents and Caregivers

Smoke free Home: learn about Secondhand Tobacco Smoke and its health effects on your family. En Español

Asthma Home Checklist (PDF, 260KB, 8 pages, info about PDF)
Learn to eliminate asthma triggers in your home.

Asthma friendly products

Taking Control - A Guide for People with Asthma
A guide for understanding the severity of your child's asthma.

School Nurses/Teachers

Asthma Friendly Schools

Partners

Mid-Atlantic Region Asthma Initiative (MARAN)

Join the Online Community Network:Communities in Action for Asthma-Friendly Environments Online Network is a year-round resource for mentoring and collaboration designed to support your asthma management program. Learn more about and join the Online Community Network.

EPA-Funded Study Finds Key Elements of Successful Asthma Programs:EPA and the University of Michigan Asthma Health Outcomes Project (AHOP), an international study of over 400 asthma programs is one of the most wide-reaching assessments to date. The study found that asthma programs that address environmental triggers work best to improve health outcomes.

National Asthma Forum: Community leaders from across the nation are meeting to share best practices and discuss effective strategies for managing asthma and improving health outcomes for people with asthma in your community.

Learn more about the National environmental Leadership Award

Apply now for EPA's National Environmental Leadership Award in Asthma Management at the application deadline is March 5, 2009. Read about the Award Winners

Connect with National programs

Media Resources

Publications and Resources

Media Materials and Public Service Announcements (PSAs)

Check out our MARAN Newsletter.

Asthma is a serious, sometimes life-threatening respiratory disease that affects the quality of life for millions of Americans. Although there is no cure for asthma yet, asthma can be controlled through medical treatment and management of environmental triggers. EPA is committed to educating all Americans about asthma so that everyone knows what asthma is, how the environment can affect asthma patients and how to manage environmental asthma triggers.

Asthma Facts

Asthma leads to 2 million emergency room visits and 5,000 deaths per year in the U.S.
Asthma accounted for more than 14 million missed school days in 2000.
Asthma costs (health care costs and lost productivity) totaled $14 billion in 2002.

Asthma Frequently Asked Questions

What is Asthma?
Who Gets Asthma?
What Causes Asthma?
What Happens During an Asthma Attack?
How is Asthma Treated and Controlled?

What is Asthma?

Asthma is a lung disease that can be life threatening. Asthma is a long-term disease that can affect you for the rest of your life.

Who Gets Asthma?

Asthma is a public health problem for both developed and developing countries. It occurs in all age groups and ethnic groups. It often starts in childhood.

What Causes Asthma?

Though many theories exist, the cause of asthma is unknown. People who have asthma tend to have airways that narrow more easily than nonasthmatics and are usually allergic to inhale allergens. A variety of factors can set off an asthma episode including cold, flu, and sinus infections, exposure to allergens (e.g. dust mites, protein particles shed by cats and dogs, and pollen); exercise; tobacco smoke; air pollution; strong emotional expressions; chemical irritants; and drugs (aspirin and beta blockers). Each person with asthma reacts to a different set of factors. Identification of these factors in an individual is a major step towards learning how to control an asthma episode. Many scientists are studying the role genetic factors play in asthma.

Common Environmental Asthma Triggers

Click on the links below to learn more about Asthma triggers commonly found indoors where Americans spend up to 90% of their time and ways to reduce exposure to them:

You will also find information on EPA's Web site about:

What Happens During an Asthma Attack?

When asthma causes breathing problems, the person experiences an "asthma attack", or episode. During an attack, three major changes can take place in the lungs:

Cells in the air tubes make more mucus than normal. The mucus is thick and sticky and tends to clog up the air tubes.
Cells in the airways get inflamed, causing the air tubes to swell.
The muscles around the air tubes tighten. These changes cause the air tubes to narrow and make it hard to breathe.

How is Asthma Diagnosed?

A careful medical history, physical examination, and test of pulmonary function provide information needed for a diagnosis of asthma. Symptoms include breathlessness, wheezing, chest tightness and cough, worse particularly at night or in the early morning.

Symptoms occur or worsen in the presence of exercise, allergens, irritants, and viral infections (e.g. cold and flu). Young children whose primary symptom is a cough or who wheeze with respiratory infections are often misdiagnosed as having bronchitis or pneumonia (including acute respiratory infection, ARI), and thus are ineffectively treated with antibiotics or cough suppressants. Tobacco smokers and elderly patients frequently suffer from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease - COPD with symptoms similar to asthma. Yet they may also have asthma and benefit from treatment.

How is Asthma Treated and Controlled?

Control of asthma is defined as the absence of symptoms and acute attacks, no use of relief medication, no emergency room visits, normal activity level, including exercise, and normal lung function. To control your asthma you should know what you can do to reduce your chances of having an attack and what to do if you have an asthma episode. Talk to your doctor to set up an asthma management plan. You can download a sample Asthma Action Plan (PDF, 2 pp, 119KB, info about PDF) to help you work with your doctor to create an asthma action plan for your individual circumstances. Together, you and your doctor can monitor your asthma, determine common triggers and how to avoid them, and access the best medications to treat your asthma.

When you and your doctor make the plan, be sure to include:

      Your child's asthma triggers.
      Instructions for asthma medicines.
      What to do if your child has an asthma attack.
      When to call your doctor.
      Emergency telephone numbers.

Asthma Awareness Month Activities in Region III

Contact:
Janice Lewis
Air Protection Division
Tel. - 215-814-2185
Email: lewis.janice@epa.gov

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