It didn't get much response, so I figured that, despite the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology's statistics that indicate that as many as 15% of asthma cases are connected in some way to the workplace, maybe very few people are actually having problems with occupational asthma.
Lately, though, I've seen a lot of people in other communities (including in Shareposts here on HealthCentral) that are asking questions about exposure to chemicals and irritants in the workplace, and I'm beginning to think that the problem is indeed widespread, but awareness of the problem is not.
This is frustrating, but it's hardly surprising. Employers, school officials, and government agencies have a long history of both ignorance of the disease and flippant dismissal of asthma sufferers' concerns. Only recently have most states passed laws allowing kids with asthma and allergies to carry epi-pens and inhalers with them in school, and still some school officials seem ignorant of their requirements under the law.
At least one member of the community at WEGO also has reported problems getting through airport security with her nebulizer, and I know of several other people who have had similar problems, even with inhalers:
The TSA guidelines specifically allow these devices, but screeners are often just ignorant of these guidelines, and the agency itself seems unsympathetic toward asthma suffers (a TSA spokesman's advice: Just put your inhaler in your checked bags -- it will save everybody a lot of trouble).
Advocacy organizations have made great strides recently in trying to educate the public and in getting potentially life-saving legislation passed, but we as individuals need to be aware of our rights, and we need to educate ourselves and others, stand up for ourselves, and exercise our rights.
Obviously since I'm a moderator at WEGO, I spend most of my online time there, but I think online communities in general are great resources and great ways for people to learn from others, so I'd like to encourage discussion of this issue in as many places as possible. I'd also like to offer my help to anybody who wants to learn more about occupational asthma or who doesn't know where to turn for help. I've learned a lot from my own research on this issue and from listening to others' stories, but I can't guarantee I have all the answers. I will promise, however, that I'll try to help anyone who needs it, and I'm also very excited to hear other people's experiences and their ideas for asthma advocacy and education.
