“What people need to know is that asthma isn't a minor 'wheeze-disease.' It kills over 5,000 people in America every year, and I could've been one of them,” said Jackie Joyner-Kersee, three-time American Olympic gold medalist who has lived with asthma her entire life.

Worldwide, 300 million are afflicted with asthma, and it kills 255,000 people a year. In America, 26 million people have asthma -- 7 million of them are children. Three-fifths of all cases are thought to be hereditary. It is the most common long-term childhood disease, and asthma accounts for about 2 million emergency room visits a year.

What is asthma?

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory lung disease that narrows and obstructs airways in the lungs. This narrowing can lead to wheezing, or whistling, in and out of the lungs. Other symptoms are chest tightness, shortness of breath, coughing at night or early morning, and increased mucous production.

This inflammation makes airways swollen and sensitive. They may react strongly to offensive, inhaled substances, causing the muscles around the airways to constrict. This narrows airways, restricting airflow to the lungs. Cells in the airways create more mucous, and this creates a chain reaction of further restricting airways that could lead to a person having a panic attack because of breathing problems. If there is coughing, shortness of breath, trouble breathing or chest tightness, pain or pressure, get medical help right away. This is a full-blown asthma attack that mandates emergency measures because it could be fatal.

The cause of asthma is not well understood. Genetic and environmental factors both may come into play. What is known is that there are certain respiratory infections in childhood, parents who have asthma, an inherited tendency toward allergies, and exposure to some kinds of viral infections in childhood while the immune system still developed.

Another theory from researchers posits that the Western influence of “clean, clean, clean” is a radical change to our living conditions. Overall, childhood infections have declined, and many kids don’t have as much environmental exposure as in the past. This affects infants’ and children’s immune-system development and may increase the risk of asthma, especially for kids who have close family members with the condition.