Asthma used to be mainly an urban problem, but now it’s become an epidemic in the countryside–this could be due to Fracking. Fracking may lead to earthquakes, but does it also lead to asthma?
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For the first time, a study has linked asthma in adults with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The study of male twins who were veterans of the Vietnam War suggests that the association between asthma and PTSD is not primarily explained by genes. Does this mean that our Iraq War vets will come home not only deaf, but also asthmatic?
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Newswise – For years, doctors have wondered why children who live in cities have much more asthma than those raised in thecountryside, and also why black children are more severelyaffected than whites. Is it because more Afro-Americans live in cities, or is it due to racial genetics? Now a nationwidestudy of asthmatic children shows that cockroaches are themain cause of their asthma. Roaches are present in even veryclean homes, inside the walls and in warm places, such asbehind light switches. You can use poison to kill theroaches you see, but just like mice and rats, there are manymore lurking in unseen places.
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Scientists at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have found mouse traces in 82% of U.S. homes just like yours. Samples were collected from 75 randomly selected areas across the country. The 831 homes tested were in all parts of the U.S. (the northeast, southeast, midwest, southwest, northwest), all housing types, and in urban, suburban, and rural settings.
Researchers looked for evidence in dust samples from kitchen and living room floors, upholstered furniture, beds, and bedroom floors. Kitchen floor concentrations were the highest?enough to cause allergies and asthma. Residents of high-rise apartments and mobile homes had the largest amounts.
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