Khyana Brown said she hasn’t had an asthma attack in over a decade, something she attributes to her weight loss.
“I'm trying to get off my medicine,” Brown said. “I don't want to always be on albuterol for the rest of my life. So, I'm trying to get off that where it's possible.”
She recalls a childhood spent in and out of the hospital due to asthma attacks, summers at an asthma-centered camp, and nights connected to a CPAP machine. But, Brown said, making healthier choices has helped manage her chronic lung condition.
“I just want to be normal,” Brown said.
However, sticking to a workout routine can challenging when extreme heat rolls in, she said.
“I could work out in this (the cool weather) and be all right. My asthma will not bother me,” she said. “But if it's hot, ain't no working out.”
Dr. Katrina Korfmacher, deputy director of UR Medicine's environmental health sciences, said climate change is making outdoors particularly uncomfortable for people who deal with allergies and asthma.
“The kinds of trees that produce pollen that people tend to be allergic to are going to be more common,” Korfmacher said. “We also expect that air quality in general will get worse, hot and humid days, and all three of those things are worse for people with asthma.”
Korfmacher said climate change coupled with natural disasters will likely continue to exacerbate the condition—especially for those living in older homes. She said about 30% of asthma-related attacks can be attributed to in-home sources.
“Older housing in poor condition that's subject to more of these extreme conditions is likely to have multiple effects on residents' health,” Korfmacher said.
She added that the surge in humidity and heat locally, paired with older housing stock that wasn't built with central air conditioning, will cause an increase in mold. Korfmacher said this will result in more people suffering from asthma because of conditions within their homes.
Korfmacher advises homeowners to ensure that drains are working well, and their roofs are in good condition. She said having a dehumidifier or an air conditioner in damp spaces will also help.
