Asthma is a serious chronic lung disease that appears to be on
the rise in California, the United States and many other countries around the world. The prevalence of asthma in
the U.S. has increased by more than 75% since 1980; children and certain racial groups, especially African Americans,
have experienced relatively greater increases in asthma prevalence. An estimated 11.9% of Californians - 3.9 million
children and adults - report that they have been diagnosed with asthma at some point in their lives, compared to
the national average of 10.1%. Nearly 667,000 school-aged children in California have experienced asthma symptoms
during the past 12 months. Asthma causes breathing problems due to a narrowing of the airways causing the lungs
to get less air. Attacks are characterized by a tight feeling in the chest, coughing and wheezing.
Air pollution plays a well-documented role in asthma attacks, however, the role air pollution plays in initiating
asthma is still under investigation and may involve a very complex set of interactions between indoor and outdoor
environmental conditions and genetic susceptibility. The Research Division of the Air Resources Board has been
a leader in developing and supporting research to understand the relationship between air pollution and asthma.
Most notably, the ARB-funded Children's Health Study at the University of Southern California found that children
who participated in several sports and lived in communities with high ozone levels were more likely to develop
asthma than the same active children living in areas with less ozone pollution. In another ARB-funded study, researchers
at the University of California, Irvine found a positive association between some volatile organic compounds and
symptoms in asthmatic children from Huntington Park. Additional ARB studies are underway and many will focus on
the role of particulate matter pollution on asthma. In the Central Valley the ARB F.A.C.E.S. project is examining
the role of particulate matter pollution in the exacerbation of childhood asthma. |
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Studies on the interaction
of air pollution and asthma
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Children's Health Study
One of the projects the
Research Division conducted to examine children's exposures to air pollutants, the harmful effects of air pollution
on children's health, and actions needed to reduce children's exposures and risk. |
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F.A.C.E.S.
The Fresno Asthmatic
Children's Environment Study (F.A.C.E.S.) project was the first to be sponsored under the auspices of the ARB's
new Vulnerable Populations Research Program. The study examined the effect of environmental factors, including
air pollution, on the progression of asthma in children in Fresno. |
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Huntington
Park Asthma Study
Twenty-six Hispanic children,
ages 10 -16, living in Huntington Park, East Los Angeles County, were studied in an investigation funded by ARB
and the SCAQMD to evaluate the effect of exposure to volatile organic compounds on asthmatics. The final report
for the Evaluation of Health Effects of Toxic Air Pollutants in a Southern California Community can be found in our final report archive on-line at this
link. |
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More information on air pollution
and asthma
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Indoor
Air Quality and Personal Exposure Assessment Program
The California
Air Resources Board (ARB) carries out a non-regulatory Indoor Program that includes sponsored research, exposure
assessment, development of indoor air quality guidelines, and public education and outreach. The goal of the Indoor
Program is to identify and reduce Californian's exposures to indoor air pollutants. |
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ARB - Community Health Information
It is our goal to ensure that all Californians, especially children and the elderly, can live, work and play in
a healthful environment— free from harmful exposure to air pollution. To achieve this goal, we have developed the
Community Health Program in order to place a new emphasis on community health issues in our existing programs.
These pages will help you better understand the air you breathe and what is being done by the ARB to reduce air
pollution.
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| - Additional information from other agencies - |
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General information and fact
sheets on asthma
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| NEW! CAPHI (California Asthma Public Health Initiative) Monthly
Conference Call on Asthma Issues |
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| NHLBI
(National Heart, Blood and Lung Institute) - Facts About Asthma |
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| American
Lung Association - Asthma Information Page |
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| Asthma
information for kids from the American Academy of Allergy and Immunology |
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| Childhood
Asthma Fact sheet from the American Lung Association |
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| Adult
Asthma Fact sheet from the American Lung Association |
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| All About Asthma Storybook (Spanish)- pdf |
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| All About Asthma Storybook (English) - pdf |
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| Asthma in California: Report from the California Health Information Survey - pdf |
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| Asthma
in Children: News from the National Institutes of Health |
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| Asthma
in the United States: A report from the Centers for Disease Control |
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| The California
Asthma Public Health Initiative |
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| U.S.
EPA - Asthma Resources |
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For more information please contact Dr. Barbara Weller
at blweller@arb.ca.gov or by phone at 916-324-4816.
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