In an interview with the Health Channel, Dr. Mario Zambrano, Pediatric Emergency Medicine Physician with Homestead Hospital, talks about asthma in children. He explains that it can get serious if the child does not follow a specific treatment plan. 

Asthma can get worse with time, so it is important to use the medications prescribed, like inhaled steroids. Dr. Zambrano laments that, unfortunately, they are stigmatized, “A lot of people don’t like to use inhaled steroids, but they are preventive medications to help avoid asthma attacks or severe asthma attacks.”

 The CDC states that asthma affects 1 in 12 children. Dr. Zambrano explains that the rates are high because doctors have gotten better at diagnosing it. “You can argue that there’s more of it, but another factor is that we’re cleaning a lot. We’re using a lot more propellants in the air. We’re using a lot of gas and the ozone layer is being affected. I think some of [the asthma] is related to the environment,” Dr. Zambrano speculates. 

Dr. Zambrano adds that one of the major symptoms of an asthma attack is shortness of breath. “They say they feel like there’s a pillow over their face. They can’t get air in in their lungs nor out. That means you’re in dire straits if you get to that point.” 

Watch the full segment of Dr. Mario Zambrano discussing asthma in children, here: https://youtu.be/B7JerC-e6d8