Asthma
is a chronic lung condition in which airway inflammation
results in recurrent breathing problems. Approximately 5
million children and adolescents in the United States have
been diagnosed with asthma.1 However,
it is likely that asthma goes undiagnosed in many children
and adolescents.2 Minorities, particularly
African Americans, experience a higher incidence of asthma
than whites. Children and adolescents living in the inner
city also suffer from a disproportionately high incidence
of asthma.1 In addition, children and adolescents from families
with low incomes and from single parent households are more
likely to have an asthma-related disability.3 Asthma
in children and adolescents is a leading cause of school
absenteeism and ranks first among chronic conditions that
limit children's and adolescents' participation in physical
activity. And children with asthma and obesity have more
frequent and longer-lasting asthma attacks.4
Vigorous physical
activity may cause asthma symptoms in children and adolescents
whose asthma is poorly controlled. As a result, many children
and adolescents with asthma limit their physical activity,
which can lead to poor physical fitness status. Children
and adolescents with asthma who limit their physical activity
usually do so because of misinformation, fear, or mismanagement
of their condition, not because the condition demands these
limitations. Improved understanding of and treatments for
asthma will help children and adolescents with asthma participate
fully in physical activity.
