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Show Exercise— New Weapon Against Asthma Stop Itching Instantly Help Prevent Infection pase Bite? ie cael By OSCAR SCHISGALL IXTEEN-YEAR-OLD Joey squinted at the batter, then pumped his arm, wound up, and let go with a fast one. It whizzed past the batter for a strike, and the catcher was grinning as he tossed it back to the pitcher’s mound. There was nothing different or special that ‘you could see about Johnny or his friends. They looked like ordinary boys going through the same spring baseball Ts ballet as other boys all over the country. aU calm and Whirl away. Any day. With Mioou! Nidoh Rock, Slide or Slip? A er oe IerashieeySinhasee Place. Do not slide, slip or rock. eee eet se 5: FPG; Wide World. imASORATORES, 829.4, Chicege, 1 60H SAFE,S NOW SURE, SPEEDY RELIEF OF SKIN ITCH x chapping, sunburn. Remedies containing an- Resinol Greaseless con- tibiotics have been tested, but often cause side effects tains an amazing, proven “anti-itch” medication worse than itching. After many years of research Resinol Greaseless Cream called Resorcin. Quickly and effectively relieves most any kind of itching. was developed...a doctor's formula cont o eeeae = ineaGraein 9% tube, or lar in jar. At drug stores, J x x x 5 a RESINOL*" Only their doctor could tell you that these boys were victims of asthma. A major medical breakthrough has saved them from sitting out life on the side lines. A few years ago, these boys would have been forbidden to touch a baseball or any other piece of sporting equipment. They would have been cruelly condemned to inactive lives along with the 5,000,000 other Americans—half of them children—who suffer seriously from asthma. lt was once feared that by exercising, they might lose their breath, and the loss of breath would quickly bring on an asthmatic episode. So the parents of asthmatic children would keep them quiet, even bedridden, and consequently they became part of the great army of the handicapped. Any form of play or work that demanded physical effort was strictly forbidden. Nowthe idea of keeping asthmatics inactive has been abandoned at the National Jewish Hospital in Denver (a free, nonsectarian institution that accepts only those severe cases which cannot be helped anywhere else), Dr. Irving H. Itkin, who is chief of the hospital’s department of asthma-allergy, follows the opposite course. He insists that the majority of his patients exercise. It may begin with the simplest forms— walking, calisthenics, riding a bicycle: But it will progress into more demanding activities. Today you can watch teams of young patients play basketball;football, baseball, and the girls bowl, skate, and play volleyball. WhenI asked DriItkin to explain his reasons, he said-Simply: “All right, let's talk in nonmédical language. When an asthma attack occurs, the bronchial tubes contraet. That makes it difficult for the lungs to suck in the oxygen they need. You see patients gasping and struggling to breathe. 10 Family Weekly, June 25, 1967 Dockers once banned baseball for children with asthma. Now, it's part of the cure. “At that point, or before it is reached, a doctor may inject epinephrine (a form of adrenalin). This quickly relaxes the bronchial tubes. As they relax, they allow ample oxygen to pass through to the lungs. “The adrenalin, however, merely relieves the attack. It does not cure asthma. We follow a method that seeks to make therapeutic use of exercise. The lungs require a good deal of oxygen when you're playing strenuous games. So you are training the heart and lungs to suck in the oxygen they need.” ‘Dr. Itkin’s records indicate that three out of four cases show permanent improvement as the result of exercise. Of equal importance, not a single asthmatic attack has occurred because of such Phys: ical exertion! “T realize,” Dr. Itkin said, “that farents will ask their doctors what exercises to allow asthmatic children to try. If they follow our experience, they will begin with simple ones and let thém become more © and-more demanding. “Usually the, child himself will know when he's reaching beyond his capabilities. He’ll-becometired. He will want to stop and rest. We've found that we can trust such instinctive reactions,” Exercise is not the only exciting new weapon used for coping with the agonies of asthma. Along with his colleague, Dr. Gardner Middlebrook, Dr. Itkin has developed the Quantitative Inhalation Challenge Apparatus—QUICHA,for short. Using it, a patient inhales and exhales varying amounts ofallergens that may be causing his illness, He breathes in and out of plastic tubes. The apparatus enables doctors to measure a patient’s susceptibility to the allergens he inhales. The long fight against asthma is in high gear now—and so is Joey. He and his friends no longer have to wait lonely and chairbound for the final victory. + |