Our CorrespondentLudhiana, June 17
To create health awareness among the masses, the 25th public health lecture on “Asthma — its home care and prevention” was organised by the Health Department of Dayanand Medical College and Hospital. It was delivered by Dr S.K.Jindal, Professor and Head, Department of Chest, PGIMER, Chandigarh.
Dr Rajoo Chinna, convener of the Health Education Cell, said the topic was specially chosen keeping in view the polluted atmosphere in the city, which was triggering the breathing problems.
Dr Jindal expressed his unhappiness over the fact that the present generation was breathing in the polluted air, which was making the lungs weak day by day. He revealed that a recent study conducted by the Global Institute of Asthma (USA) said a sudden rise was found in the incidence of asthma all over the world and death rate was also increased. The disease was more common in females.
Dr Sandeep Puri, Medical Superintendent, DMCH, said 50 per cent visiting the chest OPD of DMCH were suffering
from asthma.
Dr Jindal said the disease was actually an allergic disorder which could be controlled but not eradicated completely. Asthma was caused by a lot of factors like exercise, stress and change in temperature. But the common causes were the infections, smoke, pollen grains, falling hair of pets like dogs and cats, tobacco, pollution, eatables and some medicines. Dr Jindal said that by birth, there was a tendency of getting allergy towards some particular thing, but now various tests were available to detect the sources of the allergy.
The common symptoms were cough, mucus, breathing difficulty, pain in the chest etc. Dr Jindal
said," if the attack of asthma occurs by playing some particular sport, even then the person should not give up that particular game. The person should be given proper treatment and some physical exercises should be suggested to him”.
The speaker said that some of the best Olympians in the world were asthmatic. He said in children if it was not treated on time, it could retard the growth which could lead to serious consequences. The fabric weavers, factory workers and sweepers were more prone to the disease.
Dr Jindal said India was a land of heat and dust and it was difficult to avoid these factors but these were not the sole causes of asthma and in the neat and clean countries like the USA, Scotland and New Zealand, the incidence of asthma was high.
