Interview with dr. Hermelijn Smits on asthma prevention
Asthma is the largest chronic disease among children. As yet, there is no cure. The lungs of these children are continuously inflamed due to an overreaction of their immune system to harmless substances. This has a big impact on their lives. Immunologists are convinced that asthma can be prevented if the immune system is properly programmed in the early years after birth. To prove that asthma can be prevented and thus finding a solution for the biggest chronic childhood disease, Lung Foundation Netherlands (Longfonds) has set up the research programme LONGFONDS | Accelerate Asthma Prevention. A team of international top researchers are working on this challenge under the supervision of dr. Hermelijn Smits.
There is a lot of attention focused on this project. Smits gave an extensive interview to JA! Magazine, the magazine of the association for youth physicians in the Netherlands (AJN Jeugdartsen Nederland). In this article she talks about the findings:
Respiratory complaints such as wheezing, chest tightness and viral infections are some of the most common problems in young children. For some of these children, this leads to asthma when they reach school age. 'It would be great if we could prevent asthma in these young children.' Immunologist Hermelijn Smits, together with a group of international medical researchers and the Longfonds, are conducting research into asthma in young children.
