understanding the basics

As your child's number one caregiver and advocate, we'd like to give you the opportunity to learn all you can about asthma.

More than 22 million Americans have asthma, including an estimated 7 million children. However, it remains unclear why some people develop it and others don't.

What healthcare providers and researchers do know is what happens in the body and how to treat it. In this section, you can learn about:

  • What happens in the body during an asthma attack.
  • The similarities and differences between the major kinds of asthma.
  • Asthma symptoms, and how asthma differs from – but is sometimes triggered by – allergies.
  • Common asthma triggers and some tips on how to identify which situations and substances trigger your child's asthma.