Why Do You Need to Get Your Child’s Asthma Under Control?
If your child’s wellbeing is affected by asthma, poorly controlling their condition can have detrimental effects on their sleep and academic wellness. This is according to study results presented at the American Thoracic Society’s 2013 International Conference in Philadelphia, which revealed that children with poorly controlled asthma sleep worse and perform worse in school than their peers with well-controlled asthma.
Based on 170 ethnically diverse children aged seven to nine living in the Providence, Rhode Island, area, the researchers found that children with poorly controlled asthma had schoolwork of lower quality and were more careless in their schoolwork compared with peers whose asthma was well-controlled. Careless schoolwork was associated with poorer sleep quality, and children who struggled to stay awake in class tended to have a more difficult time falling asleep.
The researchers measured the children’s asthma symptoms over three 30-day periods during the school year. Symptoms were ascertained using spirometry, which measures the amount of air exhaled in 1 second (FEV1), as well as the diaries of the children and their caregivers. The researchers assessed asthma control using a questionnaire called the Asthma Control Test, and sleep quality was measured using a method called actigraphy, which tracks motor activity at night.
In a press release, principal investigator Daphne Koinis-Mitchell, PhD, of Brown University’s Alpert Medical School, commented, ‘Our findings demonstrate the detrimental effects that poorly controlled asthma may have on two crucial behaviours that can enhance overall health and development for elementary school children; sleep and school performance. Urban and ethnic minority children are at an increased risk for high levels of asthma morbidity and frequent health care utilization due to asthma. Given the high level of asthma burden in these groups, and the effects that urban poverty can have on the home environments and the neighborhoods of urban families, it is important to identify modifiable targets for intervention.’
Asthma is actually a fairly recent phenomenon, as it was classified as a rare disease until the mid-1950s. However, in developed or industrialised countries in particular, more and more cases have since been reported. Here in Britain, we have some of the highest rates of asthma in Europe. As it stands, asthma affects the wellbeing of 5.4 million people in the UK, or 1.1 million children (1 in 11) and 4.3 million adults (1 in 12). In 2010, there were 1,143 deaths from asthma in the UK, including 16 children aged 14 and under.
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