Disease Proof

A Pittsburgh basketball camp is doing its part to help kids with asthma. Jill Daly of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports:

It's easy to understand why the children don't participate in sports, said Dr. David Skoner, asthma specialist at Allegheny General Hospital's Division of Asthma, Allergy and Immunology.

"Exercise triggers [asthma] symptoms in 90 percent" of children with asthma, he said. Sometimes parents don't even know why it is their child is not interested in sports, he said.

"We've got to find a way to get these kids exercising," he said. "Not exercising leads to rising obesity and makes asthma worse."

The two camps are recruiting children from throughout the region. Both combine asthma education and basketball skills.

The new camp is a partnership between AGH and the university's DiSepio Institute for Rural Health and Wellness. Other community health organizations are involved as well. Basketball skills are taught by the university's head basketball coach, Bobby Jones, and his players.

For more on exercise and asthma, be sure to check out their categories.