Asthma Investigation

Has your child ben tested for Celiac? Albuterol has side effects that can cause what you describe... however there is a type of Albuterol that begin with an L (I can get you the name when I get home tonight) it is Albuterol cut without the ingredients that cause the side effects. I'm at work right now but I can get you this drug name tonight and e-mail you later. You need a good Allergist and possiblly a Gastroenteroligt (sp) ... I have 2 children and am moving back to the area. I used to live in Plainfield 5 years ago. Both my children have had these types of issues. My sons is 2 1/2 and my daughter is 7 months. He has been tested for celiac and was borderline... he had allergies to Wheat, Milk, Soy, Edd and Peanuts. He has outgrown Wheat, Milk, Soy. My daughter has been on a neubulizer since she was 1 month old and has been on Pulmicord (asthma treatment and has had the albuterol issues too). Have you tried Pulmicord or Singular for Asthma? If you want to contact me for more information I can share some of my experiences... There is a Dr Joseph Leija in Lombard that I used to go to before I had children, he was really GOOD. I do not know what his experience with children is other than I remember seeing a bunch of kids during my weekly visits.

I think doctors lately are quite quick to jump on the asthma bandwagon. I have had asthma for 16 years and my daughter's pediatrician started talking about giving her nebulizer treatments at 6 mos for b/c she had allergies and a runny nose. We've since switched doctors. he also wanted to preventatively put her on nasal steroids.

Anyway, that's my little issue. If you suspect your daughter's issues may not be asthma related, here are just some things that help me keep mine under control (and perhaps would tell you how severe it is or if it is that or an infection?):
Air purifiers in my bedroom.
Humidifier in the winter (vaporizers are great).
Always wear a scarf over my face when outside (cold air shrinks the lungs and causes attacks).
Avoid caffeine.
Drink a lot of water and don't take a lot of decongestants.
Anti-allergen encasings on pillows and mattresses.
Vacuum often with HEPA filter vacuum.

I have pretty bad allergies, which is probably obvious, but when my allergies act up is when my asthma acts up, too. And in the winter it acts up because of the cold, dry air.

Those are just some of my thoughts. I hope you can get to the bottom of what is going on and I do hope your daughter isn't really asthmatic b/c it's really frustrating to live with. I, too, get really jittery and shaky from my albuteral inhaler and try to limit it's use. I was on some inhaled steroids for a couple of years in college that actually seem to have improved my condition a lot. There aren't really any adverse effects with them, either.

Good luck!

J.-

Check out this web site:

www.keepkidshealthy.com/symptoms/asthma_symtoms.htlm

Very interesting-

Good luck!

I sent your information to a freind of mine and here is her response. If you would like her informaiton I can get it for you.

Hi,

Name is Deb Villarese. My heart poured out to you when I read what you are going through with your child. I can especially relate to the drugs and their side effects.

I know will sound like an old story, and yet it also will be a very sad story because over the past 25 years, they, the medical industry still hasn�t come up with any solutions with asthma in young children

By the time my son Todd was 1 year old, he had been hospitalized 5 different times with the diagnosis of �pneumonia.� Back then, they wouldn�t let the parents spend the night and the visiting hours were very limited. By the time he was 18 months, my pediatrician suggested allergy testing. ( the kind that they scratch their little body and put the �toxins� in the scratch.) They normally didn�t do it to kids that young, but he was certainly a concern for all of us. The testing actually gave him an asthma attack and he was administered a shot of adrenalin which they really didn�t like doing too often.

Todd was the youngest child to ever be put on an inhaler. I had taught him at age 15 months to self propel and suck in the medicine that was put in the small apparatus. This was long before the portable nebulizer had been made available to the general public. Many times I believe he was admitted in the hospital because he just needed a breathing treatment.

Along with the drugs that kept him up all night, caused very labored breathing, and made him look like the �Pillsbury Doughboy� because it caused such puffiness, I was instructed to remove everything from his room. The only thing in his room was his crib ( which I wiped down every day with bleach water, the vinyl pull down shades, and the wood floor. He had no toys, books, games, and even his blanket and sheets had to be washed daily. The Doctors had me convinced that I was not a �good enough� housekeeper, especially with a child who had such breathing challenges.

We even sold the house we lived in and bought a brand new house thinking that there were some mold issues in the old house. ( I might add, this was in the early 70o�s before mold issues were even talked about)

Because of moving to a new area, I found a new pediatric allergist. He suggested I was creating a toxic environment because of all the chemicals that I was using to �obsessively� clean my house. Bleach, Sparkle, Windex , and even the laundry detergent had a lot of fillers. He suggested that I find a person who sold Shaklee products because they were all natural, did not have any toxic residue. I have to admit that it made a huge difference when I finally found then and started using them. Instead of getting sick every 3-4 weeks, he could last for 3-4 months. Dr Lin was Chinese and he said that all the chemical cleaners were causing a break down in a very week immune system. He told me that allergies were a sign of a weak immune system and that he knew his system was compromised because he was sick with lung problems just way too much.

I then started doing my own research. I found that the thing that built the immune system strong was food��vitamins, minerals and protein. He was a normal 7 year old and his diet was about what tasted good, not what was good for him.

I took him to a Doctor 3 hours away and he coincidently suggested that I put him on a mico-biotic diet in order to nourish his body better and in addition, he wanted me to put him on supplements. The crazy part was that he was going to sell me Shaklee again. These 2 doctors never knew each other were over 150 miles away from each other, one was from China, the other was from Egypt. I decided it was Devine intervention.

I got my own products, followed the program and the diet. A lot has changed since then, but I am here to tell you, that this story has helped 100�s of Moms over the years because it all made sense. Today, My son gets sick occasionally with a virus. He is a pilot for a major airline and lives a normal life.

It changed my life and as a matter of fact, it made such a difference in my life, I felt obligated to tell others. I have a similar story with my daughter with ear infections also.

I loved how it worked and how I was able to help others and change their lives for the better which the doctors are so unable to do because they are dealing with drugs and never think to ask about the environments they are living in.

I have now sold the products for 25 years. I market them because I love them and because I can make a difference in peoples lives.

My daughter was diagnosed with asthma at 2 and seems to be outgrowing it now (she is 4 1/2). She also has food allergies which are still hanging on but hopefully that will subside with age. Either way...her allergist who specializes with asthma patients also is Dr. Jacqueline Pongracic with Childrens Memorial. They educate really well on the asthma issues and I experienced the same symptoms with the albuterol via the nebulizer so they put her on a different kind which doesn't make her so wired.
I HIGHLY reccommend Dr. Pongracic. It's usually a 2-3 month wait to get in for the first time but after that its great. They are very thorough in answering all questions and making sure parents are educated.
Hope the info helps! Good luck...its certainly a scary time when they are so little.
Dr Pongracic
###-###-####
Division of Allergy

J.,

Sorry to hear about your daughter's problem. After reading your request, I immediately thought of the seminar I attended last night. It was a wellness seminar, promoting a product called Juice Plus and I remember the woman talking about children with asthma, among other things. I, personally, don't know much about how the product could help, but the email address of the person holding the meeting is ____@____.com you can get answers from her and hopefully an alternative to your current treatment.

J.

I can help you. I too am a nurse and have seen kids with asthma get better. Call me at ###-###-####.

P.

J. -- I have a 4yr old son, who last year was having horrible issues with coughing till he puked. Docs just kept upping his meds, Steroids/intal/Xopenex etc. he was a mess.. we got a recommendation for a Pediatric Chiropractor and he was off all those meds relatively quickly, and we have yet to have to use them again. It's been about a year. Even HE knows he's healthy, and loves it. He does do some changing of your diet and it does help. I do not follow it as strict as I should but have seen a difference in what I do do... please contact me if you would like to talk more.

Hello J.,

I'm forwarding you some information regarding an article I saved in my inbox a while ago regarding a link with Asthma and household cleaners.

I hope this provides some answers for you. I partner with a Health and Wellness Company that sells non-toxic household products. If you want more information on this company please let me know.

Thanks,
C. C.

Pesticides & Household Cleaning Chemicals Linked To Asthma Epidemic In Children

Dec 28, 2004
Author: Nigel Hawkes
Source: London Times Newspapers LTD
http://www.sierraactivist.org/article.php?sid=46439
HOUSEHOLD chemicals, including bleach, disinfectant and cleaning
fluid, have been blamed for the huge surge in childhood asthma in
Britain.

A study of more than 7,000 children shows that children born into
households which use them most are twice as likely to suffer
persistent wheezing, often a precursor to asthma.

Incidence of the disease has tripled since the 1970s and the total
number in the country who suffer is estimated to have reached 1.4
million. Britain has one of the highest rates of wheezing children
in the world.

The study shows a clear connection between persistent wheezing and
use of a range of domestic chemicals, such as bleach, paint
stripper, carpet cleaner and air freshener. The use of household
cleaning products has soared in the past two decades: the market has
grown by 60 per cent since 1994.

The researchers are not claiming that these chemicals cause asthma
but that there is a strong link. Their results back up an Australian
study published in August.

The data comes from Bristol University�s Children of the 90s
project, which has been following a group of children born in the
Avon area in the early 1990s. This study, published in Thorax,
correlates health with information about their homes and lifestyle.

"We are seeing what appear to be effects on lung function, either
while the baby is still in the womb or after birth," Dr Andrea
Sherriff, of the university, said. "We cannot say exactly what
chemicals are involved but our results are highly validated. We know
the participants in the study well and can rely on the information
they give us."

Before they gave birth, mothers were asked how often they used
certain chemical-based products. From these questions, their
households were divided into categories based on "total chemical
burden".

The team compared this with the incidence of wheezing in children up
to the age of 3?. Those in the top 10 per cent were more than twice
as likely to suffer persistent wheezing as those in the lowest 10
per cent.

"We have since followed children to the age of 8," Dr Sherriff said.
"The effects seem to persist." The team concludes: "These findings
suggest that children whose mothers made frequent use of
chemical-based domestic products during pregnancy were more likely
to wheeze persistently throughout early childhood, independent of
many other factors."

The Australian study, based on a smaller sample, linked volatile
compounds in household chemicals with asthma. The Bristol team
suggests that the chemical formaldehyde could be a common factor.

Another possible explanation is that cleanliness itself may cause
asthma. This theory suggests that the immune systems of children
raised in over-clean environments do not develop properly. As a
result they turn against the body and trigger allergies, asthma or
eczema.

Professor Andrew Peacock, of the British Thoracic Society, said:
"More long-term studies are needed before we advise pregnant women
to throw out all their air fresheners. But there are measures that
can be taken to protect yourself and your baby, such as reducing the
number of household products that you use and by wearing gloves and
keeping windows open when cleaning."

THE CULPRITS

Disinfectant (used by 87.5% of households)

Bleach (84.8)

Aerosols (71.7)

Air freshener (68)

Window cleaner (60.5)

Carpet cleaner (35.8)

Paint or varnish (32.9)

White spirit (22.6)

Pesticide (21.2)

Paint stripper (5.5)
Dry-cleaning fluid (5.4)

Hi J...

I do not know a lot about asthma, but I do know that what you wrote, does not seem normal at all for anyone who has asthma. Coughing all day and night, and being fragile is not very typical of asthma. Have you thought about get a second opinion or bringing her to somewhere like Children's in the city for an evaluation? Trust your instinct and don't wait for something else to happen..... Sorry for no real concrete info. I hope that everything works out ok....

B.