Education/Outreach Materials

Background: Although it is thought that inner-city areas have a high burden of asthma, the prevalence of asthma in inner cities across the United States is not known.

Objective: We sought to estimate the prevalence of current asthma in US children living in inner-city and non–inner-city areas and to examine whether urban residence, poverty, or race/ethnicity are the main drivers of asthma disparities. Methods: The National Health Interview Survey 2009-2011 was linked by census tract to data from the US Census and the National Center for Health Statistics. Multivariate logistic regression models adjusted for sex; age; race/ethnicity; residence in an urban, suburban, medium metro, or small metro/rural area; poverty; and birth outside the United States, with current asthma and asthma morbidity as outcome variables. Inner-city areas were defined as urban areas with 20% or more of households at below the poverty line. Results: We included 23,065 children living in 5,853 census tracts. The prevalence of current asthma was 12.9% in inner-city and 10.6% in non–inner-city areas, but this difference was not significant after adjusting for race/ethnicity, region, age, and sex. In fully adjusted models black race, Puerto Rican ethnicity, and lower household income but not residence in poor or urban areas were independent risk factors for current asthma. Household poverty increased the risk of asthma among non-Hispanics and Puerto Ricans but not among other Hispanics. Associations with asthma morbidity were very similar to those with prevalent asthma. Conclusions: Although the prevalence of asthma is high in some inner-city areas, this is largely explained by demographic factors and not by living in an urban neighborhood.

Helping Schools Reduce Asthma Risk, Save Money

Healthy Cleaning & Asthma-Safer Schools: A How-To Guide is a new set of guidelines that helps school districts go green and save money by transitioning to asthma-safer cleaning products and practices. A companion video introduces the Guide and features a school custodian whose asthma got worse while on the job. Also, custodians and administrators from across California describe the successes they've achieved using the methods recommended.

Studies confirm that asthma in schools is a serious health problem. Approximately five million Californians - one in eight people - have been diagnosed with asthma, and 20% of Californians spend part of their day in a school. Everyone in schools - custodians, staff, and students - can be exposed when harmful cleaning and disinfecting products are used. Newer cleaning products and technologies allow school districts to save money and have clean and healthy schools with fewer risks to health and the environment.

The Guide also explains in simple, manageable steps how school administrators, facility managers, and other school stakeholders can switch to asthma-safer cleaning. Ready-to-use tools and forms will help districts progress through each step. A sample newsletter article and press release are included to help districts publicize safer cleaning successes throughout the school community. And the Guide includes a list of green cleaning, asthma and disinfection resources.

The Cleaning for Asthma-Safe Schools (CLASS) project developed the guide and the video. CLASS helps California schools adopt safer cleaning practices to protect worker and student health. CLASS is housed in the California Department of Public Health's Work-Related Asthma Prevention Program.

The tools and information in this guidance will help keep the air clean where many Americans spend up to 90 percent of their time – indoors.  Some of the biggest threats to indoor air quality stem from moisture issues. Leaking roofs, plumbing problems, condensation issues, poor indoor humidity control, and lack of drainage around the base of buildings are  some of the commonly reported causes of moisture problems in the United States.  These problems can not only threaten the structural integrity of buildings, they can also increase exposure to mold and other biological contaminants. Such exposure is associated with increases in the occurrence and severity of allergies, asthma and other respiratory illnesses.