Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America

There is no cure for asthma or allergies...yet. Help us support research and education nationwide and give 60 million American children and adults hope for a "life without limits."

Why do we exist?

Over 55 million Americans currently suffer from asthma and allergies. Asthma alone results in 14 deaths daily. Allergist diseases affect more than 20% of the U.S. population. The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America is the premier patient organization dedicated to improving the quality of life for people with asthma and allergies and their caregivers, through education, advocacy and research. AAFA provides practical information, community based services, support and referrals through a national network of chapters and educational support groups. AAFA is also the only patient organization to sponsor research toward better treatments and a cure for asthma and allergic diseases.

What have you accomplished?

AAFA regularly receives stories from people about how they learned to work with their asthma and allergies to improve their lives style. One story is about a young lady who had suffered from asthma her whole life. She felt as though she couldn’t participate with the other children in gym class or at recess for fear of having an asthma episode. Her doctor saw that she wasn’t learning to work with her asthma very well, so her suggested that she attend a SAY (Support for Asthmatic Youth) meeting. SAY groups are one of the educational support groups affiliated with AAFA. At the SAY meetings she spoke with other kids her age to learn how they developed a long-term treatment plan for their asthma and received a student asthma action card to give to school so that if she were to have an asthma attack the school would be able to respond correctly. She saw that her peers were able to join extracurricular activies, such as sports, and that they were able to be successful in them. The group suggested that she work with her doctor to figure out her own long-term treatment plan and figure out her personal limits and symptoms to recognize the start of an asthma episode. Through the help of her health care professional and the support of the members of her SAY group, this young lady has gone on to become a successful athlete and a peer mentor to younger members of her SAY group. She shows them how they too can learn to overcome any obstacle, including asthma.

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