The expression “school asthma” refers to the increase in attacks due to the academic environment of young French people.
- Asthma is a chronic respiratory disease caused by permanent inflammation of the bronchial tubes.
- It is responsible for nearly 60,000 hospitalizations and almost 1,000 deaths in France each year.
- To protect asthmatic children, the Gregory Pariente Foundation (GPFD) is giving new advice to parents.
As the children have returned to school, the Gregory Pariente Foundation (GPFD) explains to parents how to protect their child from “school asthma”.
“Every year, weeks 36 to 38 give rise to a peak in asthma attacks among those under 15, which is identified by a peak in the number of calls to SOS médecins, a peak in visits to hospital emergency rooms and a peak in hospitalizations after visits to emergency rooms.”the nonprofit organization explains in a press release.
This phenomenon is due to four main causes: stopping basic treatment during the holidays; the resurgence of episodes of respiratory viral infections when returning to community life; exposure to certain allergens at school and college; contact with formaldehyde*.
Three ways to prevent your child from having asthma attacks at school
To protect asthmatic children from all these elements, the Gregory Pariente Foundation suggests three areas of action for parents.
1/ Vigilance.
At the start of the school year, parents and young people must be even more attentive to the warning signs that asthma is no longer controlled: daily breathing difficulties, wheezing in the chest, chest tightness, waking up at night, more frequent use of an inhaler, etc.
2/ Compliance.
Basic anti-asthma treatment and allergy treatment should be resumed as soon as possible if these are interrupted during the summer holidays.
3/ Avoidance.
Exposure to allergens at school and college is significant but still insufficiently known. Young people must protect themselves by avoiding sharing the same coat rack and rubbing against their classmates’ clothes when jostling on stairs or in corridors, for example. Those who use school buses must be even more vigilant because of the presence of mites, mold and even traces of cleaning products due to lack of good ventilation.
School asthma: for better classroom ventilation and reduction of mold
With particular reference to schools, the foundation is campaigning for better ventilation in classrooms and a reduction in mould. “The presence of air pollutants in classrooms is worrying: nearly 30,000 cases of asthma could be avoided each year in children aged 6 to 11 by limiting exposure to formaldehyde through “air-ventilation actions”, in particular through regular maintenance of ventilation systems”say the activists. “By reducing visible mold, nearly 12,000 cases of wheezing in classrooms could be prevented” they add.
Asthma affects around 4 million people in France. It is responsible for nearly 60,000 hospitalizations and almost 1,000 deaths each year.
Asthma is a chronic respiratory disease caused by permanent inflammation of the bronchial tubes. It manifests itself by attacks characterized by shortness of breath, wheezing, dry cough or a feeling of tightness in the chest.
*indicator of more general exposure to volatile organic compounds and mold in some classrooms.
