Seven states and the District of Columbia have been named to AAFA’s Honor Roll this year. AAFA sends congratulations to: Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Indiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.

Click through to AAFA’s site to view an interactive map and detailed reports for all 50 states and D.C., comprehensive reports for the Honor Roll states as well as study methodology.

Allergy Foundation Releases Annual “Fall Allergy Capitals” Rankings, Louisville is #1

WASHINGTON, Sept. 27, 2012 – Fall is a time to enjoy beautiful colors and autumn weather outdoors. But for 40 million Americans with seasonal allergies, this time of year brings an unwelcome harvest: trillions of pollen particles traveling through the air right into your eyes, nose and mouth. Allergic rhinitis – also called nasal allergies, seasonal allergies or hay fever – is among the most common chronic diseases for children and adults, affecting more than 12 percent of the U.S. population.

The primary fall allergy trigger – ragweed pollen – causes itchy runny nose, nasal congestion, repeated sneezing, watery eyes, inflamed sinuses and, in severe cases, difficulty breathing. It can be more problematic if you also have asthma.

The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) recently announced its 2012 Fall Allergy Capitals™ ranking, and Louisville, Kentucky, tops the list as “the most challenging place to live with fall allergies.” The annual report names 100 U.S. cities based on an analysis of three factors including pollen, allergy medications usage and the number of allergy specialists per patient. See the full list at www.AllergyCapitals.com.

 The Top 10 Fall Allergy Capitals

“Everyone seems to be feeling allergies these days and fall is the most common allergy season after spring,” says Dr. Beth Corn, a Board Certified Allergist in New York City and a member of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI). “No matter if it’s men, women or children, in the city, suburbs or the country, allergies don’t discriminate,” says Corn.

However, AAFA is quick to remind that no matter what city you live in allergies can be a problem all year long, indoors as well as outdoors. According to Brian Oliver, a spokesperson for AAFA, “With a little bit of planning and some good cleaning habits, you can keep your home as allergy-friendly as possible.” AAFA offers these tips no matter where you live:

1. Keep windows and doors closed to prevent pollen from blowing into the house.
2. Control dust mites on the bed. Look for a Certified asthma & allergy friendly mattress, like the Breathe mattress from Spring Air, and wash sheets weekly in hot water (130 degrees F) to kill mites and their eggs.
3. Use a quality vacuum that has a high-efficiency filter weekly to keep indoor allergens to a minimum.
4. Change the air filter in your furnace regularly. Filters can trap lots of dust and allergens, so replace them every 30-90 days. Look for Certified asthma & allergy friendly filters, like Lysol brand air filters.
5. Reduce the presence of mold by decreasing moisture around the house, keeping humidity below 50% and clearing the yard of damp firewood and leaves.

About AAFA

AAFA is the leading patient organization for people with asthma and allergies in the U.S. The asthma & allergy friendly™ Certification Program is a joint project of AAFA and Allergy Standards Limited (ASL), an international research and testing organization. Learn more at www.aafa.org/certified.

]]> http://allergicliving.com/index.php/2012/10/09/aafas-fall-allergy-capitals-louisville-is-no-1/feed/ 0 http://allergicliving.com/index.php/2012/03/20/asthma-stays-with-you-for-life/ http://allergicliving.com/index.php/2012/03/20/asthma-stays-with-you-for-life/#comments Wed, 21 Mar 2012 01:53:23 +0000 Allergic Living http://allergicliving.com/?p=13016 A huge Canadian study shows that once you’re diagnosed with asthma, you’re very likely to be stuck with it for life.

The study tracked almost 614,000 province of Ontario residents who were identified as having asthma in 1993, following them for 15 years.

While some patients reported periods of disease inactivity, sometimes for years, most were managing their asthma most of the time. In the 15-year followup, 82.3 percent had active asthma.

“A lot of people have asthma and would like to know how their disease will affect them over time,” study lead author Dr. Andrea Gershon, a respirologist, said in a media release.

“These findings offer insight into the course of asthma activity and support the hypothesis that once a person has asthma, they will continue to have it for life.”

The study was conducted by researchers for the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES) in Toronto, and was published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

“We are dismayed that the President has wavered on setting ozone standards that prevent illness and death,” says Bill McLin, president and CEO of Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA). “This delay affects adults, compromising their ability to work and increasing their need for expensive medical services like emergency room visits, prescription drugs and hospitalizations. Children are exposed to potentially greater vulnerability because their lungs are still developing.”

McLin believes that state governments and businesses that pay for healthcare will bear this burden. “While the President asserts that industry is facing regulatory burdens, I say that Americans are burdened by an Administration that lacks the courage to protect their lives, health and personal finances from preventable conditions like asthma.”

AAFA is calling on the government to commit and act to advance clean air goals. “We call on the Administration to allow EPA to follow its mandate and implement the standards within the range recommended by its own scientists,” says McLin. “Set air quality standards that support the health of Americans now. Americans with asthma cannot wait.”

For more information, visit AAFA’s website.

Researchers have discovered that between 26 and 29 percent of those of African descent carry a gene that appears to make them susceptible to asthma.

The study carried out by the EVE Consortium and published in the journal Nature Genetics, says the PYHIN1 and its variations may account for the large number of people of African descent who have asthma.

The study’s authors suggest this may be caused by an imbalance between the asthmatic’s abundant T-helper 2 (Th2) immune environment, which is prone to allergic conditions, and a Th1 immune environment that gives way to inflammatory conditions.

The study was conducted by researchers at the Mayo Clinic and the Olmsted Medical Center in Rochester, Minn., and the findings were presented at the 2011 annual conference of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology in San Francisco. The researchers looked at two population groups – 2,392 asthmatics and 4,784 people without asthma – to determine incidence rates of diabetes, heart disease, inflammatory bowel syndrome and rheumatoid arthritis.

There was no increased risk among asthmatics for the latter two conditions.

But while the incidence rate of diabetes in those without asthma was 104 per 100,000 people, that grew to to 138.4 per 100,000 among those with asthma. In non-asthmatics, the incidence of heart disease was 134 per 100,000 which increased to 188.6 per 100,000 in asthmatics.

While this is significant, Dr. Young J. Juhn, the study’s lead author, explained at the AAAAI conference that the findings are preliminary. He said more research is required to determine the impact that asthma might have on the development of other chronic conditions.

Read the press release about the study here.

The warnings will cover 75 per cent of the packaging and will contain graphics, testimonials as well as a toll-free helpline for smokers wishing to quit.

Experts agree that the new warnings will likely encourage many smokers to give up tobacco which is welcome news for those with asthma. The clearer the air is from second and third-hand smoke, the easier asthmatics will be able to breathe.

David Hammond, Professor at the University of Waterloo and a former advisor on tobacco warnings to the World Health Organization, said that “the larger the warnings, the less opportunity for tobacco manufacturers to use creative design to detract from the warnings and to increase the appeal of their products to young people.”

One of the new labels will feature an image of former Canadian model Barb Tarbox on her deathbed. Next to it are the words, “This is what dying from lung cancer looks like.” Tarbox was an anti-smoking activist until she died in 2003 from lung cancer. She was 42.

Garfield Mahood, Executive Director of the Non-Smokers’ Rights Association said that if the warnings continue in the same direction, they may help to “prevent tens of thousands of tobacco deaths.”

Read more here.

After being dumped by his girlfriend, the man became depressed when she “un-friended” him on Facebook. Wanting to see what she was up to, he created another account under a different name and became her friend again. However, each time he visited her profile, he experienced shortness of breath.

Doctors asked his mother to measure his peak expiratory flow before and after he viewed her profile which is when they noticed a 20 per cent decline.

Although Facebook itself is not a direct cause of asthma, these new findings suggest that it-and other social networking sites-may be a new generation of triggers for asthma caused by psychological stress. Full story here.

For one, doctors are getting better at diagnosing asthma whereas before, other respiratory conditions were being falsely classified as asthma.

More importantly, children are no longer exposed to as much cigarette smoke as before. Children living in a household where their parents smoke tend to have a higher incidence of colds and respiratory infections which can cause viruses, leading to asthma. Becker also says that asthmatics are getting better at managing their asthma which in turn leads to fewer attacks.

However, while the drop is good news, 10 per cent is still a significant incidence rate within the population and asthma attacks remain the leading reason for children’s visits to emergency wards. Becker notes that the approximately 300 deaths that occur from asthma each year is proof that more needs to be done to understand and manage the disease. More.

“We found that adding vitamin D not only substantially reduced the production of the protein driving an allergic response, but it also increased production of the proteins that promote tolerance,” Dr. Jay Kolls, Professor and Chair of Genetics at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans, said in a media release.

Kolls’ team looked at Aspergillus fumigatus, one of the most common household molds to determine why some individuals were sensitized to it while others aren’t.

The LSU researchers next plan to conduct a clinical trial – to see if vitamin D can actually be used to to treat or prevent mold sensitivity in those with asthma or Cystic Fibrosis. Read more.