| It's a humid summer afternoon, my family was all playing "IT", and unfortunately, I am the one IT. I start chasing my nephew and he collapsed. We laugh because we thought it was a joke. He told us he could not breathe, we later found out he was having an asthma attack. This day changed all of our lives. |
| According to www.wordsmyth.com, asthma is a chronic respiratory disorder characterized by labored breathing, wheezing, and a feeling of tightness in the chest, often caused by an allergy. Asthma is the most common chronic disorder that affects children under 18 years old. According to www.lungusa.org, 6.2 million children are affected by asthma and 4 million has suffered an attack in 2003. Lungs becoming sensitive, sudden temperature change, allergens, and cigarette smoke can trigger an asthma attack. Smoke can cause serious harm to children with asthma. |
| Asthma should not stop you from doing activities that you love such as playing basketball, football and swimming. Plenty of professional athletes have asthma. Figure out what your triggers are and always keep your inhaler with you. When you learn what triggers your attacks, it will be much easier to get help ahead of time. Asthma is something you should not worry about if you are properly informed. Learn how to control your asthma and that can make a big difference. Asthma does not have to control your life. |
|
Exercise and Nutrition
|
| · Exercise: exercising can keep your body healthy and fit. Bicycling, playing ball, and Double Dutch (jumping rope) are some fun exercises that you can do daily. Double Dutch is an activity you can do at anytime and anywhere. It exercises your arms and legs and helps you stay active. Riding your bike on a trail for a few hours can also help you stay active. Basketball, volleyball, and soccer are fun sports that you can play in your backyard or local park districts. They are all beneficial to your health. Children that exercise shows loss of body fat, increase in cardiovascular fitness, and improvement in fasting insulin levels. |
· Eating healthy: you may not eat healthy at school, but that does not mean you have to stop eating healthy at home. There are many ways of choosing what's healthy to eat without limiting all the foods you love. You can choose foods like………. 1. Strawberry shortcakes (recipe from Brown Gurl.com)
|
1. Instructions: Take about 3 spoons of the sliced strawberries and put them into the microwave until they are warm and separated. Allow cooling for a few seconds, then added sweetener. Place a cake on serving dish. Add sliced strawberries. Next add sweetened strawberry glaze; top with topping. If you have an enormous sweet tooth, add another pack of sweetener to the strawberries before assembling. Fat free toppings will take away additional calories.
|
|
Total calories= 165 + very low fat 2. Caramel cinnamon apples (chefs.com) |
|
2. Instructions: Melt butter in a heavy nonstick skillet over medium- high heat. Sauté apples, sugar and cinnamon 12-15 minutes, stirring frequently, or until apples begin to turn golden brown. When apples begin to caramelize remove from oven, serve with caramel topping. 3. Oven Fried Fish fillet (chefs.com) |
|
3. Instructions: Preheat oven to 450 degrees F, coat fillets with mayonnaise. Combine breadcrumbs, parsley and paprika in a shallow dish, Dredge coated fillets in breadcrumb mixture. Arrange fillets on a baking sheet coated with nonstick cooking spray, bake 12 minutes or until fillets flake easily with a fork. Serve with lemon wedges. |
| HELP!! I CAN'T BREATHE By: BIANCA BARRY |