The Toughest Kids I Know...

I love summer! Everything about it, the outside activities, the sports, the kids out of school playing in the pool or in the yard.

There is a down side, there are some kids who have difficulty playing outside. I'm talking about kids with asthma.

The Galveston Daily News.com has reported that there are about 4.1 million children in this country with asthma. These children have episodes of difficulty breathing so much so that they require medicine to relieve the symptoms and allow them to breath normally again.

What is asthma? Asthma is a chronic (long lasting) inflammatory disease of the airway. In those susceptible to asthma, this causes the airways to spasm and swell periodically so that the airways narrow. The individual then wheezes and gasps for air. What a horrible disease to have, as an adult. Imagine a child with this disease, scared and unable to breath.

Some things that trigger asthma attacks are cold air, dust mites, exercise, pollutants and even stress. So with all of these things that can trigger an attack what would you do if you had this disease? Stay inside the house away from everyone, keep your stress low, and avoid exercise at all cost? Of course not, and the children that have this disease can lead normal healthy lives and even play sports. Sure they may have to take some daily medications and mom and dad need to carry a rescue inhaler but these are some tough, brave kids.

In the old days kids were discouraged form playing sports. Today is a new age, studies have found that daily exercise can be beneficial. Playing sports are fun so it reduces stress, it helps kids maintain a healthy body weight and can even strengthen breathing muscles. Not convinced? The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology reports that Asthma affects more than 20% of elite athletes and 1 in every 6 Olympic athletes. With your doctor's permission, your child can participate in any sport they like.

So what does it mean to be a child athlete with asthma? It means that the older kids need to take ownership of their disease and recognize that to compete at their highest level they need to control their asthma. That means taking daily doses of their controller medication. It also means that they should never go to practice, workouts or games without their rescue inhaler. Parents, of course, need to be the boss but stress that the child needs to take responsibility for her medicine. An athlete cannot compete if her asthma is not under control.

The athlete and his parents should also create a written log of possible triggers, things that they know will trigger an asthma attack. Triggers like high pollen count, dusty conditions or cold air can cause an asthma attack.

Children with asthma can play any sport they wish but some need to recognize their limitations. Sports that have short burst of activity like baseball, football and sprint track events may trigger some kids. Others may find sports like long distance running and soccer to be more difficult.

Which ever sport your little athlete decides to play, support them. Create an Asthma Action Plan and have it with you at all times. Make a copy of the action plan and give it to the team coach. If you, as a parent, can help your child athlete control their asthma with their daily medication he can play any sport he wishes. Then, maybe someday, he will become an Olympic or professional athlete and buy you a big house.