Childhood Asthma Case Study

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Asthma is the most common chronic illness in childhood. Nine million children in the United States have at one point in time had asthma and it results in 200,000 hospitalizations a year for children. The occurrence of asthma, however, is not distributed evenly among the population. Children from a lower socioeconomic status are twice as likely to be hospitalized for asthma symptoms. Less advantaged children will also be more likely to experience severe asthma symptoms and have more frequent asthma attacks. Neighborhoods with lower average income and higher unemployment rates will see more children being hospitalized for asthma (Wolfe, Evans, and Seeman 2012). This paper will focus on the social determinants that cause childhood asthma to be more prevalent in certain populations and the policies that can be enacted to help solve this crisis. (Add more)
BACKGROUND OF THE DISEASE:
Asthma is a chronic disease of the respiratory system. The physiological cause of asthma is inflammation of the airways in the lungs which makes inhalation and exhalation difficult. The most common symptoms of this …show more content…

Minorities, such as African Americans and Latinos, are more likely to reside in more urban areas while more affluent white Americans are more likely to reside in suburban areas. This is due to years of racist and unfair real estate practices. Segregated urban areas are, “characterized by a disinvestment of economic resources in these neighborhoods that tends to be predictive of poor quality of life on multiple dimensions” (Williams, Sternthal, and Wright 2012). Residents of urban areas often times have less political power and the elected officials face less disapproval when they make decisions that may negatively affect the neighborhood. Housing segregation can lead to poor housing conditions such as overcrowding and housing structures that are falling

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