Children are the worst affected by Asthma, Which happens to be the most common chronic disease of childhood!!!

In Africa, many people live in neighborhoods where poverty rules as an imperious master. In these places indoor and outdoor environment triggers that cause, provoke or aggravate asthma symptoms abound. These include, amongst many others, indoor poor air quality, outdoor air pollution, fumes, dusts, smoke from cooking fires, pests, rodents, acute stress and other unpleasant conditions engendered by poverty.

Asthma is the most common chronic condition among children,1 currently affecting an estimated 6.1 million children under 18 years, of which 3.5 million suffered from an asthma attack or episode in 2016
Source

Asthma is a sensitivity of the airways of the respiratory system (lungs) that can make it hard to breathe.
The airways react to different triggers in the environment and become inflamed (swollen) and irritated.

During an asthma attack or flare-up, three things happen to the airways to restrict breathing:
• The lining of the airways swells
• More mucus is produced that clogs the airways
• The muscles around the airways tighten and make the airways smaller.
• Because children have smaller airways, the above factors can cause a greater restriction to breathing than in an adult. Asthma cannot be cured. However, with proper asthma management and treatment, children with asthma can lead normal, active lives. Some children outgrow their asthma, but for unknown reasons it can reappear in adulthood

Uncontrolled asthma can reduce a child’s quality of life by causing:

• nights of lost sleep
• restriction of activities
• reduction in a child’s ability to learn
• frequent days of missed child care/preschool
• disruption of family routines
• life threatening situations


Courtesy of Asthma Information Handbook for Early Care and Education Providers (Produced by California ChildCare Health Programme)

Why AAFWA?

Chronic respiratory diseases are listed among the leading causes of death worldwide. About 300 million people have asthma in the World presently and it is estimated that an additional 100 million people may be living with the condition by 2025. Asthma is also rated as the most common chronic disease affecting children. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) about 250 000 people die from asthma every year, mainly in low and middle income countries (LMIC), most of the former in Africa. The International Study of Asthma and Allergies has reported that asthma prevalence among children is increasing in Africa and has contributed most to the burden of disease through its effects on quality of life. In many instances it has resulted to loss of productivity, due to absenteeism from work and school. Outdoor air pollution from various sources like traffic pollution, combustion of fossils and biomass fuels, workplace dust which trigger asthma are prevalent in Africa. Sadly, lack of organized health promotion programmes, such as effective control strategies for environmental triggers, air pollutants, and occupational dusts have worsened the problem. Other constraints including those arising from the over-utilization of health services, lack of trained staff and diagnostic apparatus, and non-availability and un-affordability of inhaled medications have hindered efforts to improve the management of asthma in The Gambia in particular and Africa in General. The WHO has also reported that the levels of asthma control and health responses in the continent have been below recommended standards, and that these have contributed to the size of the disease burden. In addition, although many African countries have national guidelines for the management of asthma and other CRDs, these guidelines are not implemented in most rural areas. It is believed that many children with asthma in Gambia and Africa in general may fail to achieve their full potential if proper management and control measures are not put in place. Many people in Africa are allergic, be it food, seasonal skin or severe allergies. Asthma is closely related to allergies, it has been established that allergies can make existing asthma worse. It can also trigger asthma in a person who’s never had the condition. Allergy-induced asthma or allergic asthma affects many people in Africa. The scenario presented above is a call for change in how asthma is viewed and tackled, especially in children. PAFWA recently established in The Gambia, and will soon expand to Sierra Leone and Guinea Bissau.