Asthmatic Athletes Urge Sufferers To Take Control Of The Disease & Their Lives
By Parham, Marti
Being able to breath air in and out freely is something that is taken for granted by many people. But if you’re one of over 20 million who has asthma that’s not the case. Olympic gold medalists Jackie Joyner-Kersee and Jeanette Bolden can attest to that. In recognition of Asthma Awareness Month, both track and field athletes have made it their mission to let people know that life does go on, even with asthma.
Joyner-Kersee, a six-time Olympic medalist, tells JET that she found out she had the chronic inflammatory disease around age 18 when she began to have trouble breathing while attending college at UCLA.
“[Doctors] thought I had bronchitis and at one time they thought I had mono,” says Joyner-Kersee. “It wasn’t until I went to an allergist that we started figuring out what was going on.”
Joyner-Kersee admits that she refused to accept her condition for sometime but had to come to grips with it when her asthma attacks became more frequent, partly because she slacked off on her medications.
An active member of the Medco Tour of Champions, Joyner-Kersee educates other people with chronic diseases about the importance of pharmacy care.
“One of the key components for me was to stop living in denial. I want to get the word out that just because you’re asthmatic your quality of life should not be diminished,” says Joyner-Kersee, who strongly suggests consulting with an asthma specialist. “You can still participate in an active lifestyle.”
Bolden, Joyner-Kersee’s former college roommate, was born with asthma and has suffered with the condition all her life.
“When I was younger I was hospitalized a great deal,” explains Bolden, whose attacks were often triggered by a reaction to allergens such as pollution, pollen, dust mites or animal dander. By having her asthma triggers diagnosed by a specialist she says she has been able to develop a management plan that works for her.
Head coach for the 2008 women’s track and field Olympic team and track coach at UCLA, Bolden continues her crusade on asthma awareness year-round through the Web site, www.asthmaontrack.com. She says that her goal is to let people know that asthma should not be looked at as a handicap and that sufferers can still achieve their goals in life.
“I just want to bring hope and encouragement to anyone who has asthma,” Bolden says. “Talk to your physician. The key is to be properly diagnosed.”
According to Dr. Michael B. Foggs, chief of allergy, asthma and immunology for Asthma Health Centers in Chicago, nearly 4,000 people die from asthma each year. Of the millions who have the disease, Blacks and Puerto Ricans are the ethnic groups most affected.
“The cause of asthma is unknown but this condition can attack anyone at any age range, even though it’s more common in children,” says Foggs. He adds, “African-American women also have the highest death rate in asthma than members of any other group.”
Knowing your family history is important when it comes to diagnosing asthma. Foggs says that if a mother and father have asthma the chances are very likely that their child will inherit the dis ease as well.
“Asthma is what we call a multi-factorial condition which means it can run in families, but there’s no single gene that is responsible for the transmission of asthma,” he notes. “You have to hit the asthma lottery where you inherited genes from both parents.”
There is no cure for asthma but it can be controlled with proper medical care from a physician. For more information on asthma and asthma treatments visit the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute at www.nhlbi.nih.gov.
Six-time Olympic medalist Jackie JoynerKersee, founder of the Jackie JoynerKersee Foundation, says “that just because you’re asthmatic your quality of life should not be diminished.”
Jeanette Bolden, who won Olympic gold in the 4×100 relay in 1984, now coaches the 2008 track and field Olympic hopefuls. She encourages asthma sufferers to find out what their “triggers” are to lessen attacks and lead more active lives.
Common “Triggers” That May Cause An Asthma Attack Are:
* Animal dander
* Dust mites
* Cockroaches
* Pollen
* Mold
* Cigarette smoke
* Cold/humid weather
* Air pollution
* Strong odors
* Exercise
* Emotional stress
Source: National Heart Lung and Blood Institute
“The cause of asthma is unknown but this condition can attack anyone at any age range,” says Dr. Michael B. Foggs, chief of allergy, asthma and immunology for Chicago’s Asthma Health Centers.
Asthma Symptoms Include:
* Severe coughing
* Chest tightness
* Fast/noisy breathing
* Shortness of breath
* Wheezing
Source: National Heart Lung and Blood Institute
By Marti Parham
JET MAGAZINE
Copyright Johnson Publishing Company May 26, 2008
(c) 2008 Jet. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.