Allergies and asthma affect more than 20 percent of the U.S. population, with 40 to 50 million people suffering from allergies and 17 million suffering from asthma. Far from being harmless, allergies negatively impact the quality of life for the people who live with them, and asthma causes more than 5,300 deaths annually. To make matters worse, asthma rates are rising. From 1982 through 1994, the number of asthma cases for people under age 18 increased by 72 percent. It's time to take this health threat seriously.
Allergies are abnormal reactions to ordinarily harmless substances.
There are many symptoms of allergies, including watery, itchy eyes, sneezing and a constant runny nose. An extreme allergic reaction can result in anaphylactic shock, a life-threatening situation in which a person's airway swells shut and blood pressure drops. About 80 percent of young people with asthma also have significant allergies. Both are long-term conditions and can be triggered by environmental substances. Asthma causes inflammation and increased mucus production in the lungs, reducing the volume inside the airways.