The Asthma Epidemic: Decreasing Incidence and Increasing Resiliency among Low-Income Children

Abstract

My sister is an asthmatic. . . . While my sister’s illness was a tremendous burden, she was also fortunate. She benefited from supportive parents, excellent health care, limited allergen exposure, and a pollution-free rural environment. She rarely suffers from asthma today and lives a perfectly healthy life. What if she had not had these family, health, and environmental protective factors? For low-income families, they are rarely available. Poor parents face low-self efficacy in dealing with asthma, possess inadequate health insurance, and frequently live in areas that are heavily burdened with respiratory irritants. Low-income asthmatics growing up without important resiliency factors are hindered by asthma’s physical and psychological effects, resulting in negative outcomes.