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As winter turns into spring, many allergy and asthma sufferers may dread the blooming flowers, growing grass and windy afternoons that can carry pollen and dust.

Arkansas, a state known for its natural beauty, is also home to the No. 10 Asthma Capital in the U.S. — Little Rock.

"Arkansas is a big state (geographically)," said Mike Tringale, director of external affairs for the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA), which issues the annual Asthma Capitals list. "There are agricultural pollens that could be (asthma) triggers that you don't see in New York City."

Tringale said pollen — "nasty little critters" — from grass, trees and weeds can travel as far as 500 miles by wind.

Little Rock moved up to No. 10 in 2007 from No. 17 in 2006 on the AAFA's annual ranking.

"From our perspective, 17 to 10 is nothing," said Tringale "We've seen it jump even more. (Washington) D.C. moved from No. 52 to 4 in one year."

The AAFA examines data for the 100 most-populated cities in the country, so every city studied falls on the Capitals list somewhere.

"If one city shifts, it shifts everything above and below it," he said. Also, the methodology is based on factors that are not weighted equally. Air quality, for example, is one of the most important factors.

According to the AAFA, although no place is free of asthma triggers, some locations can be more problematic. The AAFA prepares its annual list of Asthma Capitals based on analysis of 12 factors in three groups: Prevalence Factors (morbidity and mortality statistics), Risk Factors (air quality, pollen, smoking laws, poverty) and Medical Factors (medication usage and access to specialists).
Tringale said the AAFA began compiling the annual Asthma Capitals list four years ago in response to patients and doctors asking where they should move if they have really bad asthma.

"The answer is 'nowhere,'" Tringale said. "Moving doesn't solve the problem."
Lois Turley, an allergy nurse since 1991, keeps a climate blog updated on her Web site, allergynurse.com, which tracks people's experiences with allergens in various parts of the country.

"No place is allergen-free," said Turley, the allergy nursing director for the Arkansas Center for Ear, Nose, Throat and Allergy in Fort Smith.

Tringale recommends adjusting one's daily life to help avoid asthma triggers.
"If you know pollen is one of your triggers, do indoor activities during the spring or fall," he said. "Go to the basketball game instead of the baseball game."

Turley's advice for allergy sufferers includes making one's bedroom "immaculate" to help eliminate allergens, specifically dust mites.

"You spend one-third of your life in the bedroom," she said. "If you can eliminate allergen exposure that one-third of your life, you're doing OK."
Turley's advice includes covering the mattress, box springs and pillow with mite-proof covers, washing bedding in hot, soapy water at least once a week, limiting the amount of dust-catching "knick-knacks" displayed in the room, vacuuming once a week along with steam-cleaning the carpet regularly and using a high-quality dehumidifier during the humid summer months in Arkansas.


April 2007

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