Rescue inhalers can help with asthma symptoms.
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Asthma is a disease that can make it hard to breathe. And it’s common! One in twelve people in the United States have it, including host Molly Bloom. But what is asthma? And why do some people have it, but not others?
Join Molly and co-hosts Audrey and Indytas they learn about asthma. First, they’ll shrink down and explore how breathing works — inside Forever Ago host Joy Dolo’s lungs! Then they’ll learn how and why asthma attacks happen. Finally, they’ll chat with kids’ lung doctor Stephanie Lovinsky-Desir about rescue inhalers, and what causes asthma in the first place. All that, plus a breathtaking new mystery sound!
Featured Experts:
Dr. Stephanie Lovinsky-Desir is a pediatric pulmonologist. Read more about her work here.
Educators - Lesson Plan for Brains On! - What is asthma? (Right Click to Download)
Audio Transcript
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INDI: You're listening to Brains On where we're serious about being curious.
KID 1: Brains On is supported in part by a grant from the National Science Foundation.
LEFT LUNG: Ready to start warming up, Right lung?
RIGHT LUNG: You betcha, Left Lung. The big track meet is today, and our body is going to need us lungs to do our breathing thing.
LEFT LUNG: So it can do its raining thing.
RIGHT LUNG: You mean its running thing?
LEFT LUNG: Oh, yeah. I guess that's why they call you the Right Lung because you're always right.
RIGHT LUNG: Uh-huh.
LEFT LUNG: Now, let's hold this stretch for 10.
RIGHT LUNG: 9.
LEFT LUNG: 8.
RIGHT LUNG: 7.
LEFT LUNG: 6.
RIGHT LUNG: 5.
LEFT LUNG: 4.
RIGHT LUNG: 3.
LEFT LUNG: 2.
RIGHT LUNG: 1.
[EXHALES]
Great stretch, Left Lung.
LEFT LUNG: Thanks, Right Lung. Feeling loose as a goose. She is going to run so fast.
RIGHT LUNG: So fast. But what if that thing happens to us again? You know, where we get all tight and sound wheezy?
LEFT LUNG: The Alaska attack.
RIGHT LUNG: I think it's called the asthma attack.
LEFT LUNG: Oh, yeah.
RIGHT LUNG: But don't worry. Before she runs, she always gives us that thing. Remember?
LEFT LUNG: The impaler, of course. The impaler keeps the phantasma attack away.
RIGHT LUNG: The inhaler. And it keeps the asthma attack away.
LEFT LUNG: Oh, yes. Right again.
RIGHT LUNG: Here it comes.
[SQUIRT]
[INHALE]
We're ready. Let's go railing!
LEFT LUNG: You mean running?
MOLLY BLOOM: You're listening to Brains On from APM studios. I'm Molly Bloom and my co-host today are Audrey and Indi from Queensland, Australia.
AUDREY: Hi, Molly.
INDI: Hi, Molly.
MOLLY BLOOM: It is so cool that you two are here today. And we have a lot in common. You guys are sisters. I have a sister.
AUDREY: We also all have pet dogs.
MOLLY BLOOM: Mine is named Honeybee.
INDI: And ours is named Lady.
AUDREY: And we all have asthma.
MOLLY BLOOM: I was diagnosed with asthma, actually, when I was a grown up. I started getting allergies in college and then they got worse. It made it hard for me to breathe sometimes.
And now it's pretty much under control. But sometimes when there's lots of pollens or I'm around cats, it still feels hard to breathe. So Audrey and Indi, I'm wondering, when were you both diagnosed with asthma?
AUDREY: I was diagnosed with asthma around the age of four or five. It started off not too bad, but I feel like it's gotten a slight bit worse over the years. And smoke, I have allergies. And laughing too hard when I'm with my friends, that can make it worse.
MOLLY BLOOM: Gotcha. And how about you, Indi? When were you diagnosed with asthma?
INDI: I was diagnosed around the same age as Audrey. And it's mild, but most of the time it gets worse when I'm sick.
MOLLY BLOOM: Gotcha. And do you both have the same kind of medicine that you use?
AUDREY: Yeah.
INDI: Yes.
AUDREY: We both have Ventolin inhalers.
MOLLY BLOOM: Nice. And do you have friends with asthma, too?
AUDREY: I do, yes.
INDI: Yeah, only one of them, though.
MOLLY BLOOM: So we all have asthma. And it turns out lots of our listeners do too. Here are some of their questions about it.
RUTHIE: Hi, my name is Ruthie from Louisiana and I'm nine years old. I want to know how inhalers work because I use one every night.
KID 2: What happens inside of your body when you're having an asthma attack?
HARPER: Hi, I'm Harper from Moorpark, California. My question is, how do you get asthma?
MOLLY BLOOM: And here's one that you two sent in.
AUDREY: Hi, my name is Audrey.
INDI: And hi, my name is Indi.
AUDREY: And we were wondering, why do some people have asthma and what causes it?
MOLLY BLOOM: So what made you two decide to send that question in?
AUDREY: So I was really curious about it because we have a family history of it. My dad has it and then me and Indi both have it.
INDI: I'm curious about, like, how people with asthma are diagnosed with it.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah, those are really good questions. So we're going to answer these questions in today's episode. But first, we need to understand how breathing works.
AUDREY: Because asthma is a disease that can make it hard to breathe.
MOLLY BLOOM: A few years back, we actually did a whole Brains On episode about how breathing works.
INDI: And we put a link to it in the show notes.
MOLLY BLOOM: But here are the basics. When you breathe in, the air goes.
AUDREY: Molly?
MOLLY BLOOM: Yes. Audrey.
AUDREY: Isn't the first rule of podcasting show not tell?
MOLLY BLOOM: Technically, the first rule of podcasting is never eat a giant bean burrito right before you go to the studio, which I definitely didn't learn the hard way last week.
[FART]
INDI: Cool, cool, cool. Good tip. But instead of talking about how the lungs work, what if we showed how they work?
MOLLY BLOOM: Excellent idea, Indi. How about we take the ATOM a.k.a. the Amazing Truck of Minimization?
[HONK]
It can shrink down to smaller than a freckle and take us inside a human body.
AUDREY: And it's a convertible? Fire!
MOLLY BLOOM: All we need is a host.
[DOOR CLACKS]
JOY DOLO: Around the ragged rocks, the ragged rascal ran. Pah, pah, pah, pah, pah, pah.
INDI: Isn't that Joy Dolo, host of Forever Ago?
MOLLY BLOOM: Perfect Hey, Joy, are you busy right now?
JOY DOLO: I'm just warming up to host today's episode of Forever Ago.
MOLLY BLOOM: Do you think while you're doing that, you could host us in your lungs?
AUDREY: You won't even know we're there?
JOY DOLO: What a totally normal thing to say to a person. I'd be delighted to host you in my lungs.
MOLLY BLOOM: Great. We'll just hop into here.
[DOOR CLACKS]
And if it's all right with you, we'll take the nose route.
JOY DOLO: Boogie on.
[ENGINE RUMBLES]
Oh, gosh. This tickles.
[GIGGLES]
Don't sneeze out your friends, Joy. Don't sneeze out your friends.
[INHALE]
They must be through.
MOLLY BLOOM: So when someone first takes a breath, the air goes through their nose or mouth into their windpipe.
[INHALE]
INDI: I see why they call it a windpipe.
AUDREY: Yeah. Any chance we can put the top up?
MOLLY BLOOM: You got it.
[WHIRRING]
AUDREY: Much better. Look up ahead. It splits off into two giant caverns.
INDI: Those caverns must be Joy's two lungs.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah, let's go check out the right lung. Always use your turn signal, kids. Whoa! Merging down to a single lane, better slow down.
INDI: We must be in one of Joy's bronchi.
AUDREY: These are the smaller tubes that bring the air from her windpipe into her lungs.
MOLLY BLOOM: Right. They are much narrower than the windpipe. And for people with asthma, us, these bronchi sometimes get even narrower.
INDI: Narrower enough to make breathing really difficult.
AUDREY: When this happens, it's often called an asthma attack.
MOLLY BLOOM: Usually, asthma attacks are triggered by some kind of stress on the body. They can happen during exercise.
AUDREY: Or when someone is sick.
INDI: Or during allergy season.
AUDREY: Or because of stress or other strong emotions.
MOLLY BLOOM: Sometimes when your body part reacts to something, it swells up.
INDI: Like, if your hand gets stung by a bee, it'll most likely swell up.
MOLLY BLOOM: Right. And when the bronchi react, they get swollen, too. This means there's less room inside.
INDI: Picture a tunnel with walls getting thicker or closing in.
[RUMBLE]
AUDREY: This swelling can cause the muscles that surround the bronchi to tighten, which squeezes those little breathing tubes even more so there's even less room.
MOLLY BLOOM: One time, I had an asthma attack when I was at my friend's house who had a cat. It felt like I just couldn't get a deep breath. Sort of like a gulping for air kind of feeling. Indi, have you ever had an asthma attack?
INDI: I have had an asthma attack usually when I'm sick, but they're not severe asthma attacks. Like when I was recently in Japan, it was really cold and hard to breathe. So I had to take a puff out of my inhaler.
MOLLY BLOOM: So when you get that feeling that you have to take a puff, what does it feel like in your body?
INDI: It feels tight in the chest.
MOLLY BLOOM: And how about you, Audrey? Have you ever had an asthma attack?
AUDREY: I have had multiple asthma attacks, but they're not serious that I have to be rushed to the hospital. For example, we were at the Gold Coast for Easter and I had a flare up. And I had to have a hot shower and I had to have some coffee. And coffee can open up your airways.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, that's really interesting. I did not know that. So the steam from the shower and the coffee helped your asthma attack go away?
AUDREY: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: Cool. And so, like, before you got that to help you, what was it feeling like in your body?
AUDREY: Definitely really tight and sore.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah. I remember when I was in grade school, one of my friends had asthma. And she knew it was time to use her inhaler when her-- the little thing at the bottom of her neck, that little sort of indent--
AUDREY: Oh, yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: --would go in really far. Do you guys know what I'm talking about?
BOTH: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah. So, when that goes in far, you know, oh, wow, I'm having a little trouble breathing. And I should probably use my inhaler. We'll learn more about how inhalers work after the break. But first, what do you say we get out of Joy's lungs and head back to the studio so Joy can get started on her episode?
AUDREY: Let's do it.
JOY DOLO: Achoo! Ahoy there, friends! What a breath of fresh air to see you again. Did you have a good trip?
MOLLY BLOOM: Thanks, Joy. Your lungs are in "exhale-lent" shape.
INDI: Truly breathtaking.
JOY DOLO: Oh, stop! I'm so flattered. I'm out of breath.
[CHUCKLES]
And out of puns.
MOLLY BLOOM: The lungs are great, but now it's the ears' time to shine. It's time for the--
KID 3: Mystery sound.
MOLLY BLOOM: Ready for the mystery sound, Audrey and Indi?
BOTH: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: Here it is.
[SPLASH, SQUELCH]
What do you guys think?
AUDREY: I think it's something maybe being chewed.
MOLLY BLOOM: Excellent. How about you, Indi?
INDI: It sounds like water dripping.
MOLLY BLOOM: Nice. So maybe chewing, water. Let's hear it again.
[SPLASH, SQUELCH]
Any new thoughts?
AUDREY: Maybe something being played with, like slime or.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah.
INDI: Like someone slurping something up.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah. Yeah, it sounds like a very messy eater to me.
INDI: Yes.
AUDREY: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: Like, the messiest eater of all time eating something very slurpy. Well, we will hear it again, get another chance to guess, and hear the answer at the end of the show. So stick around.
We're working on an episode about a time millions of years ago when birds and dinosaurs lived side by side. And we were wondering, if you could bring a living, breathing dinosaur to show and tell, what kind would you bring and why? A gentle triceratops for all your friends to pet? A velociraptor to play hide and seek with on the playground? Indi and Audrey, what about you?
AUDREY: I think I would bring back a velociraptor because velociraptors are smaller than normal dinosaurs. And I am smaller than my friends and I think it would have a lot in common with me.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah, I like that. How about you, Indi?
INDI: Probably the same.
MOLLY BLOOM: A velociraptor?
INDI: Yep.
MOLLY BLOOM: Nice. You just have to make sure the velociraptor gets fed first.
BOTH: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: [LAUGH]
Well, listeners, we want to know what dinosaur you'd bring to show and tell and why. Record your answer and send it to us at brainson.org/contact. While you're there, send us your mystery sounds, drawings, and questions.
AUDREY: Like this one.
KID 4: What makes food organic?
MOLLY BLOOM: You can find answers to questions like these on the Moment of Um podcast, a short dose of facts and fun every weekday. Find Moment of Um and more at brainson.org.
INDI: So keep listening.
MAN 1: Brains On Universe is a family of podcasts for kids and their adults. Since you're a fan of Brains On, you'll love the other shows in our universe. Come on, let's explore.
ALIEN: Its it's alien laundry day. While I wash my nose mufflers and tummy togas, I'll listen to a new podcast.
[GIGGLES]
How about Smash Boom Best, my favorite debate podcast?
MAN 2: Growing up, I was always a slide kid. I remember this park I went to and it had everything. There was a miniature train.
[TRAIN HORN BLARES]
A spinning set of monkey bars.
[MONKEY CHATTER]
It even had a talking pig-shaped trashcan called Porky the Litter Eater.
PORKY THE LITTER EATER: Hi, kid. I'm Porky.
ALIEN: Zorp! Signal down.
[GROWL]
Stay right there tummy togas.
[BEEPS]
Must find Smash Boom Best now!
MAN 1: Listen to Smash Boom Best wherever you get your podcasts.
MAN 3: (SINGING) Ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba Brains On.
AUDREY: You're listening to Brains On from APM studios. I'm Audrey.
INDI: And I'm Indi.
MOLLY BLOOM: And I'm Molly. Today, we're talking all about asthma, which is a disease that can make it harder to breathe. Before the break, we took a peek inside the lungs to figure out how they work.
INDI: We saw how the windpipe in your throat leads to your lungs.
AUDREY: Each lung is full of smaller tubes called bronchi.
MOLLY BLOOM: When someone has an asthma attack, these tubes can swell up and the muscles around them can tighten, which makes it hard to breathe.
INDI: When that happens, using a rescue inhaler can help.
MOLLY BLOOM: If you've ever seen someone use an inhaler at school or on the playground, it was probably a rescue inhaler.
AUDREY: They're usually small plastic tubes kind of shaped like an L.
MOLLY BLOOM: Inside the tube, there's a canister of medicine.
INDI: You push down on the canister to release a spray of medicine that you breathe in.
MOLLY BLOOM: Here to explain how a rescue inhaler works is Dr. Stephanie Lovinsky-Desir. She's a pediatric pulmonologist, which means she's a lung doctor for kids.
INDI: She was also in our breathing episode a few years back.
MOLLY BLOOM: Hi, Dr. Lovinsky.
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Hi, Molly. Hi, Audrey. Hi, Indi.
AUDREY: Dr. Lovinsky, can you explain how a rescue inhaler works?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Sure. So a rescue inhaler is a medication that we use for children when they're feeling symptoms of asthma so feeling tight in their chest, difficulty breathing, tightness. So you can think about the airways as having muscles around them. And those muscles help to keep the structure of the airway.
However, if you're having an asthma attack, those muscles might squeeze the airway to make it more narrow. So when you take your rescue pump, what that medication does is it relaxes those muscles to open up the airway. So they're not squeezed so tight, and they're nice and relaxed and open to allow air to move in and out.
MOLLY BLOOM: This episode is inspired by a question that Audrey and Indi sent in.
INDI: Why do some people have asthma and what causes it?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: That's a really interesting question that, honestly, we don't have all the answers to. We do know that people whose parents or their siblings have asthma are more likely to have asthma. So there might be some genetic components to having asthma.
We also know that factors and conditions in the environment, like long-term exposure to environmental air pollution, might trigger the lungs to be more sensitive. And those people may end up having more asthma. But it is one of these things that has many different factors and many different causes. And scientists and researchers like myself are still really trying to figure all of that out.
INDI: How are people with asthma usually diagnosed?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Wonderful question. So people are often diagnosed through many different ways. So an important factor is just asking questions. Your doctor will ask lots of questions about what your symptoms have been like, what things make the symptoms better, what things make the symptoms worse.
We also do physical exams so we can listen with our stethoscopes. And if we hear certain sounds in the chest, that might be a sign that a child has asthma. We also do breathing tests, and sometimes those tests can also give us an indication of whether or not somebody has asthma. So oftentimes, doctors put all of this information together and use that to help figure out does the child have asthma or not?
AUDREY: What made you want to be a pulmonologist?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Well, believe it or not, when I was a kid your age, I had asthma. And I think a lot of my motivation for becoming a doctor who takes care of children with asthma was because I saw how important it was for me to go to the doctor, for me to get the medication that I needed, and for my mom and dad to feel comfortable with managing when I wasn't feeling well because of the doctors who helped care for me in the office and in the hospital. So I think that really is the key to why I became a pulmonologist.
AUDREY: How is asthma passed down through generations?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: It's not really well understood. So there are some areas in people's genes that have been studied by researchers that get passed along that are thought to be potentially asthma genes. And then another thing that I think is actually really important is what I was mentioning before about environmental exposures.
So there are groups of people here in the States who live in neighborhoods and communities where they have lots of exposure to pollutants or allergens, and they're much more likely to have asthma. And then if their kids grow up in those same environments, they're likely to have asthma as well. So I think that's part of the reason why it gets passed along, a little bit of genetics and a little bit of environment.
MOLLY BLOOM: So has asthma treatment changed since you were a kid? Like the kind of medicine you're giving to kids now, is it different than when you were a kid with asthma?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Oh, my gosh! Absolutely. Well, I should say that many of the medications are the same. So we talked about rescue medications and those were around when I was a kid.
But there's a whole new group of medications that have recently come out to help treat asthma. And those are injections. Sometimes they're given once a month.
Sometimes they're given once every two weeks. And those medications really do quiet down the immune system and help to make your immune system less reactive to things in the environment that might trigger asthma. It's really making a big difference in the lives of many children.
MOLLY BLOOM: And do you still have asthma?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Actually, I've outgrown my symptoms. So this is another thing, area that's super interesting, which are people like me who had asthma throughout childhood and then, as they turned into adolescence, no longer have symptoms of asthma. And we're still trying to uncover why is that?
MOLLY BLOOM: What do you want kids to know out there who do have asthma?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Overall, I just want kids to know that asthma is pretty common. Many athletes have asthma and they're still able to be highly functioning and very active. And so asthma should not get in the way of having a super active life.
INDI: Thanks so much for talking with us, Dr. Lovinsky.
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Oh, it's been absolutely my pleasure. Thank you so much for having me.
[BOUNCY MUSIC]
AUDREY: Asthma is a disease that can make it hard to breathe.
MOLLY BLOOM: In someone with asthma, the little tubes that carry air from their windpipe into their lungs are extra sensitive.
INDI: These little tubes are called bronchi. They can get irritated and swell up for lots of different reasons, like if someone's exercising or is allergic to something.
MOLLY BLOOM: A special device called a rescue inhaler can send medicine into the lungs.
AUDREY: That helps relax the muscles around the bronchi to make it easier to breathe.
MOLLY BLOOM: Lots of people with asthma also use a daily medication to keep symptoms under control.
INDI: People are more likely to get asthma if other people in their family have it or if they live in a place with lots of pollution.
MOLLY BLOOM: Doctors and scientists are trying to find better treatments for asthma, and are working to prevent so many people from getting it in the first place.
AUDREY: That's it for this Brains On episode.
MOLLY BLOOM: This episode was written by--
NICO GONZALEZ WISLER: Nico Gonzalez Wisler.
MOLLY BLOOM: Our editors are--
SANDEN TOTTEN: Sanden Totten.
MOLLY BLOOM: And--
SHAHLA FARZAN: Shahla Farzan.
MOLLY BLOOM: Fact checking by--
ROSIE DUPONT: Rosie DuPont.
MOLLY BLOOM: We had engineering help from Daniel Kassulke and Derek Ramirez, with sound design by--
RACHEL BREES: Rachel Brees.
MOLLY BLOOM: Original theme music by--
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
INDI: We had production help from the rest of the Brains On universe team.
MOLLY BLOOM: Molly Bloom.
ROSIE DUPONT: Rosie DuPont.
ANNA GOLDFIELD: Anna Goldfield.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Ruby Guthrie.
LAUREN HUMPERT: Lauren Humpert.
JOSHUA RAY: Joshua Ray.
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
CHARLOTTE TRAVER: Charlotte Traver
ANNA WEIGEL: Anna Weigel.
INDI: And--
ARON WOLDESLASSIE: Aron Woldeslassie.
MOLLY BLOOM: Beth Perlman is our executive producer. And the executives in charge of APM Studios are Chandra Kavati and Joanne Griffith. Special thanks to Joy Dolo, Kirstie and Brett Patterson, Mary [? Oropecan, ?] Virginia Smith, and Rebecca Rand.
AUDREY: Brains On is a nonprofit public radio program.
MOLLY BLOOM: There are lots of ways to support the show. Subscribe to Brains On Universe on YouTube, where you can watch animated versions of some of your favorite episodes, or head to brainson.org.
INDI: While you're there, you can send us mystery sounds, drawings, and questions.
MOLLY BLOOM: Audrey, Indi, are you ready to hear the mystery sound again?
INDI: Yes.
AUDREY: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: All right, let's hear it.
[SPLASH, SQUELCH]
What are our new thoughts?
AUDREY: I think I'm staying with the same, playing with something like slime or Play-Doh?
MOLLY BLOOM: Lovely guess. What do you think, Indi? What's your guess?
INDI: Someone slurping up something.
MOLLY BLOOM: Slurping. What do you think they're slurping up?
INDI: Probably like spaghetti or something.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, yeah, spaghetti is a very slurpy food. Yeah, I have no idea what this is. Definitely sounds wet whatever it is, maybe. Someone walking through a swamp.
AUDREY: Or mud.
MOLLY BLOOM: Maybe. I don't know. Should we hear the answer?
BOTH: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: All right. Here it is.
MILES: Hi. My name is Miles and I'm from Beaverton, Oregon. That was the sound of me washing my hands with soap.
MOLLY BLOOM: [GASP]
Washing hands with soap? I wash my hands. You must wash your hands. But that was so hard. Why was that so hard?
AUDREY: I hear it now.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yes, of course. I'm giving us partial credit, though because we heard something wet. We just didn't know what that wet thing was.
INDI: Yeah.
AUDREY: Yes.
[SPLASH, SQUELCH]
MOLLY BLOOM: Now it's time for the Brains Honor Roll. These are the incredible kids who keep the show going with their questions, ideas, mystery sounds, drawings, and high fives.
[LISTING HONOR ROLL]
MAN 4: (SINGING) Brains On. Brains On.
MOLLY BLOOM: We'll be back next week with an episode all about solar power.
BOTH: Thanks for listening.
KID 1: Brains On is supported in part by a grant from the National Science Foundation.
LEFT LUNG: Ready to start warming up, Right lung?
RIGHT LUNG: You betcha, Left Lung. The big track meet is today, and our body is going to need us lungs to do our breathing thing.
LEFT LUNG: So it can do its raining thing.
RIGHT LUNG: You mean its running thing?
LEFT LUNG: Oh, yeah. I guess that's why they call you the Right Lung because you're always right.
RIGHT LUNG: Uh-huh.
LEFT LUNG: Now, let's hold this stretch for 10.
RIGHT LUNG: 9.
LEFT LUNG: 8.
RIGHT LUNG: 7.
LEFT LUNG: 6.
RIGHT LUNG: 5.
LEFT LUNG: 4.
RIGHT LUNG: 3.
LEFT LUNG: 2.
RIGHT LUNG: 1.
[EXHALES]
Great stretch, Left Lung.
LEFT LUNG: Thanks, Right Lung. Feeling loose as a goose. She is going to run so fast.
RIGHT LUNG: So fast. But what if that thing happens to us again? You know, where we get all tight and sound wheezy?
LEFT LUNG: The Alaska attack.
RIGHT LUNG: I think it's called the asthma attack.
LEFT LUNG: Oh, yeah.
RIGHT LUNG: But don't worry. Before she runs, she always gives us that thing. Remember?
LEFT LUNG: The impaler, of course. The impaler keeps the phantasma attack away.
RIGHT LUNG: The inhaler. And it keeps the asthma attack away.
LEFT LUNG: Oh, yes. Right again.
RIGHT LUNG: Here it comes.
[SQUIRT]
[INHALE]
We're ready. Let's go railing!
LEFT LUNG: You mean running?
MOLLY BLOOM: You're listening to Brains On from APM studios. I'm Molly Bloom and my co-host today are Audrey and Indi from Queensland, Australia.
AUDREY: Hi, Molly.
INDI: Hi, Molly.
MOLLY BLOOM: It is so cool that you two are here today. And we have a lot in common. You guys are sisters. I have a sister.
AUDREY: We also all have pet dogs.
MOLLY BLOOM: Mine is named Honeybee.
INDI: And ours is named Lady.
AUDREY: And we all have asthma.
MOLLY BLOOM: I was diagnosed with asthma, actually, when I was a grown up. I started getting allergies in college and then they got worse. It made it hard for me to breathe sometimes.
And now it's pretty much under control. But sometimes when there's lots of pollens or I'm around cats, it still feels hard to breathe. So Audrey and Indi, I'm wondering, when were you both diagnosed with asthma?
AUDREY: I was diagnosed with asthma around the age of four or five. It started off not too bad, but I feel like it's gotten a slight bit worse over the years. And smoke, I have allergies. And laughing too hard when I'm with my friends, that can make it worse.
MOLLY BLOOM: Gotcha. And how about you, Indi? When were you diagnosed with asthma?
INDI: I was diagnosed around the same age as Audrey. And it's mild, but most of the time it gets worse when I'm sick.
MOLLY BLOOM: Gotcha. And do you both have the same kind of medicine that you use?
AUDREY: Yeah.
INDI: Yes.
AUDREY: We both have Ventolin inhalers.
MOLLY BLOOM: Nice. And do you have friends with asthma, too?
AUDREY: I do, yes.
INDI: Yeah, only one of them, though.
MOLLY BLOOM: So we all have asthma. And it turns out lots of our listeners do too. Here are some of their questions about it.
RUTHIE: Hi, my name is Ruthie from Louisiana and I'm nine years old. I want to know how inhalers work because I use one every night.
KID 2: What happens inside of your body when you're having an asthma attack?
HARPER: Hi, I'm Harper from Moorpark, California. My question is, how do you get asthma?
MOLLY BLOOM: And here's one that you two sent in.
AUDREY: Hi, my name is Audrey.
INDI: And hi, my name is Indi.
AUDREY: And we were wondering, why do some people have asthma and what causes it?
MOLLY BLOOM: So what made you two decide to send that question in?
AUDREY: So I was really curious about it because we have a family history of it. My dad has it and then me and Indi both have it.
INDI: I'm curious about, like, how people with asthma are diagnosed with it.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah, those are really good questions. So we're going to answer these questions in today's episode. But first, we need to understand how breathing works.
AUDREY: Because asthma is a disease that can make it hard to breathe.
MOLLY BLOOM: A few years back, we actually did a whole Brains On episode about how breathing works.
INDI: And we put a link to it in the show notes.
MOLLY BLOOM: But here are the basics. When you breathe in, the air goes.
AUDREY: Molly?
MOLLY BLOOM: Yes. Audrey.
AUDREY: Isn't the first rule of podcasting show not tell?
MOLLY BLOOM: Technically, the first rule of podcasting is never eat a giant bean burrito right before you go to the studio, which I definitely didn't learn the hard way last week.
[FART]
INDI: Cool, cool, cool. Good tip. But instead of talking about how the lungs work, what if we showed how they work?
MOLLY BLOOM: Excellent idea, Indi. How about we take the ATOM a.k.a. the Amazing Truck of Minimization?
[HONK]
It can shrink down to smaller than a freckle and take us inside a human body.
AUDREY: And it's a convertible? Fire!
MOLLY BLOOM: All we need is a host.
[DOOR CLACKS]
JOY DOLO: Around the ragged rocks, the ragged rascal ran. Pah, pah, pah, pah, pah, pah.
INDI: Isn't that Joy Dolo, host of Forever Ago?
MOLLY BLOOM: Perfect Hey, Joy, are you busy right now?
JOY DOLO: I'm just warming up to host today's episode of Forever Ago.
MOLLY BLOOM: Do you think while you're doing that, you could host us in your lungs?
AUDREY: You won't even know we're there?
JOY DOLO: What a totally normal thing to say to a person. I'd be delighted to host you in my lungs.
MOLLY BLOOM: Great. We'll just hop into here.
[DOOR CLACKS]
And if it's all right with you, we'll take the nose route.
JOY DOLO: Boogie on.
[ENGINE RUMBLES]
Oh, gosh. This tickles.
[GIGGLES]
Don't sneeze out your friends, Joy. Don't sneeze out your friends.
[INHALE]
They must be through.
MOLLY BLOOM: So when someone first takes a breath, the air goes through their nose or mouth into their windpipe.
[INHALE]
INDI: I see why they call it a windpipe.
AUDREY: Yeah. Any chance we can put the top up?
MOLLY BLOOM: You got it.
[WHIRRING]
AUDREY: Much better. Look up ahead. It splits off into two giant caverns.
INDI: Those caverns must be Joy's two lungs.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah, let's go check out the right lung. Always use your turn signal, kids. Whoa! Merging down to a single lane, better slow down.
INDI: We must be in one of Joy's bronchi.
AUDREY: These are the smaller tubes that bring the air from her windpipe into her lungs.
MOLLY BLOOM: Right. They are much narrower than the windpipe. And for people with asthma, us, these bronchi sometimes get even narrower.
INDI: Narrower enough to make breathing really difficult.
AUDREY: When this happens, it's often called an asthma attack.
MOLLY BLOOM: Usually, asthma attacks are triggered by some kind of stress on the body. They can happen during exercise.
AUDREY: Or when someone is sick.
INDI: Or during allergy season.
AUDREY: Or because of stress or other strong emotions.
MOLLY BLOOM: Sometimes when your body part reacts to something, it swells up.
INDI: Like, if your hand gets stung by a bee, it'll most likely swell up.
MOLLY BLOOM: Right. And when the bronchi react, they get swollen, too. This means there's less room inside.
INDI: Picture a tunnel with walls getting thicker or closing in.
[RUMBLE]
AUDREY: This swelling can cause the muscles that surround the bronchi to tighten, which squeezes those little breathing tubes even more so there's even less room.
MOLLY BLOOM: One time, I had an asthma attack when I was at my friend's house who had a cat. It felt like I just couldn't get a deep breath. Sort of like a gulping for air kind of feeling. Indi, have you ever had an asthma attack?
INDI: I have had an asthma attack usually when I'm sick, but they're not severe asthma attacks. Like when I was recently in Japan, it was really cold and hard to breathe. So I had to take a puff out of my inhaler.
MOLLY BLOOM: So when you get that feeling that you have to take a puff, what does it feel like in your body?
INDI: It feels tight in the chest.
MOLLY BLOOM: And how about you, Audrey? Have you ever had an asthma attack?
AUDREY: I have had multiple asthma attacks, but they're not serious that I have to be rushed to the hospital. For example, we were at the Gold Coast for Easter and I had a flare up. And I had to have a hot shower and I had to have some coffee. And coffee can open up your airways.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, that's really interesting. I did not know that. So the steam from the shower and the coffee helped your asthma attack go away?
AUDREY: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: Cool. And so, like, before you got that to help you, what was it feeling like in your body?
AUDREY: Definitely really tight and sore.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah. I remember when I was in grade school, one of my friends had asthma. And she knew it was time to use her inhaler when her-- the little thing at the bottom of her neck, that little sort of indent--
AUDREY: Oh, yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: --would go in really far. Do you guys know what I'm talking about?
BOTH: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah. So, when that goes in far, you know, oh, wow, I'm having a little trouble breathing. And I should probably use my inhaler. We'll learn more about how inhalers work after the break. But first, what do you say we get out of Joy's lungs and head back to the studio so Joy can get started on her episode?
AUDREY: Let's do it.
JOY DOLO: Achoo! Ahoy there, friends! What a breath of fresh air to see you again. Did you have a good trip?
MOLLY BLOOM: Thanks, Joy. Your lungs are in "exhale-lent" shape.
INDI: Truly breathtaking.
JOY DOLO: Oh, stop! I'm so flattered. I'm out of breath.
[CHUCKLES]
And out of puns.
MOLLY BLOOM: The lungs are great, but now it's the ears' time to shine. It's time for the--
KID 3: Mystery sound.
MOLLY BLOOM: Ready for the mystery sound, Audrey and Indi?
BOTH: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: Here it is.
[SPLASH, SQUELCH]
What do you guys think?
AUDREY: I think it's something maybe being chewed.
MOLLY BLOOM: Excellent. How about you, Indi?
INDI: It sounds like water dripping.
MOLLY BLOOM: Nice. So maybe chewing, water. Let's hear it again.
[SPLASH, SQUELCH]
Any new thoughts?
AUDREY: Maybe something being played with, like slime or.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah.
INDI: Like someone slurping something up.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah. Yeah, it sounds like a very messy eater to me.
INDI: Yes.
AUDREY: Yeah.
MOLLY BLOOM: Like, the messiest eater of all time eating something very slurpy. Well, we will hear it again, get another chance to guess, and hear the answer at the end of the show. So stick around.
We're working on an episode about a time millions of years ago when birds and dinosaurs lived side by side. And we were wondering, if you could bring a living, breathing dinosaur to show and tell, what kind would you bring and why? A gentle triceratops for all your friends to pet? A velociraptor to play hide and seek with on the playground? Indi and Audrey, what about you?
AUDREY: I think I would bring back a velociraptor because velociraptors are smaller than normal dinosaurs. And I am smaller than my friends and I think it would have a lot in common with me.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yeah, I like that. How about you, Indi?
INDI: Probably the same.
MOLLY BLOOM: A velociraptor?
INDI: Yep.
MOLLY BLOOM: Nice. You just have to make sure the velociraptor gets fed first.
BOTH: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: [LAUGH]
Well, listeners, we want to know what dinosaur you'd bring to show and tell and why. Record your answer and send it to us at brainson.org/contact. While you're there, send us your mystery sounds, drawings, and questions.
AUDREY: Like this one.
KID 4: What makes food organic?
MOLLY BLOOM: You can find answers to questions like these on the Moment of Um podcast, a short dose of facts and fun every weekday. Find Moment of Um and more at brainson.org.
INDI: So keep listening.
MAN 1: Brains On Universe is a family of podcasts for kids and their adults. Since you're a fan of Brains On, you'll love the other shows in our universe. Come on, let's explore.
ALIEN: Its it's alien laundry day. While I wash my nose mufflers and tummy togas, I'll listen to a new podcast.
[GIGGLES]
How about Smash Boom Best, my favorite debate podcast?
MAN 2: Growing up, I was always a slide kid. I remember this park I went to and it had everything. There was a miniature train.
[TRAIN HORN BLARES]
A spinning set of monkey bars.
[MONKEY CHATTER]
It even had a talking pig-shaped trashcan called Porky the Litter Eater.
PORKY THE LITTER EATER: Hi, kid. I'm Porky.
ALIEN: Zorp! Signal down.
[GROWL]
Stay right there tummy togas.
[BEEPS]
Must find Smash Boom Best now!
MAN 1: Listen to Smash Boom Best wherever you get your podcasts.
MAN 3: (SINGING) Ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba Brains On.
AUDREY: You're listening to Brains On from APM studios. I'm Audrey.
INDI: And I'm Indi.
MOLLY BLOOM: And I'm Molly. Today, we're talking all about asthma, which is a disease that can make it harder to breathe. Before the break, we took a peek inside the lungs to figure out how they work.
INDI: We saw how the windpipe in your throat leads to your lungs.
AUDREY: Each lung is full of smaller tubes called bronchi.
MOLLY BLOOM: When someone has an asthma attack, these tubes can swell up and the muscles around them can tighten, which makes it hard to breathe.
INDI: When that happens, using a rescue inhaler can help.
MOLLY BLOOM: If you've ever seen someone use an inhaler at school or on the playground, it was probably a rescue inhaler.
AUDREY: They're usually small plastic tubes kind of shaped like an L.
MOLLY BLOOM: Inside the tube, there's a canister of medicine.
INDI: You push down on the canister to release a spray of medicine that you breathe in.
MOLLY BLOOM: Here to explain how a rescue inhaler works is Dr. Stephanie Lovinsky-Desir. She's a pediatric pulmonologist, which means she's a lung doctor for kids.
INDI: She was also in our breathing episode a few years back.
MOLLY BLOOM: Hi, Dr. Lovinsky.
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Hi, Molly. Hi, Audrey. Hi, Indi.
AUDREY: Dr. Lovinsky, can you explain how a rescue inhaler works?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Sure. So a rescue inhaler is a medication that we use for children when they're feeling symptoms of asthma so feeling tight in their chest, difficulty breathing, tightness. So you can think about the airways as having muscles around them. And those muscles help to keep the structure of the airway.
However, if you're having an asthma attack, those muscles might squeeze the airway to make it more narrow. So when you take your rescue pump, what that medication does is it relaxes those muscles to open up the airway. So they're not squeezed so tight, and they're nice and relaxed and open to allow air to move in and out.
MOLLY BLOOM: This episode is inspired by a question that Audrey and Indi sent in.
INDI: Why do some people have asthma and what causes it?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: That's a really interesting question that, honestly, we don't have all the answers to. We do know that people whose parents or their siblings have asthma are more likely to have asthma. So there might be some genetic components to having asthma.
We also know that factors and conditions in the environment, like long-term exposure to environmental air pollution, might trigger the lungs to be more sensitive. And those people may end up having more asthma. But it is one of these things that has many different factors and many different causes. And scientists and researchers like myself are still really trying to figure all of that out.
INDI: How are people with asthma usually diagnosed?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Wonderful question. So people are often diagnosed through many different ways. So an important factor is just asking questions. Your doctor will ask lots of questions about what your symptoms have been like, what things make the symptoms better, what things make the symptoms worse.
We also do physical exams so we can listen with our stethoscopes. And if we hear certain sounds in the chest, that might be a sign that a child has asthma. We also do breathing tests, and sometimes those tests can also give us an indication of whether or not somebody has asthma. So oftentimes, doctors put all of this information together and use that to help figure out does the child have asthma or not?
AUDREY: What made you want to be a pulmonologist?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Well, believe it or not, when I was a kid your age, I had asthma. And I think a lot of my motivation for becoming a doctor who takes care of children with asthma was because I saw how important it was for me to go to the doctor, for me to get the medication that I needed, and for my mom and dad to feel comfortable with managing when I wasn't feeling well because of the doctors who helped care for me in the office and in the hospital. So I think that really is the key to why I became a pulmonologist.
AUDREY: How is asthma passed down through generations?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: It's not really well understood. So there are some areas in people's genes that have been studied by researchers that get passed along that are thought to be potentially asthma genes. And then another thing that I think is actually really important is what I was mentioning before about environmental exposures.
So there are groups of people here in the States who live in neighborhoods and communities where they have lots of exposure to pollutants or allergens, and they're much more likely to have asthma. And then if their kids grow up in those same environments, they're likely to have asthma as well. So I think that's part of the reason why it gets passed along, a little bit of genetics and a little bit of environment.
MOLLY BLOOM: So has asthma treatment changed since you were a kid? Like the kind of medicine you're giving to kids now, is it different than when you were a kid with asthma?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Oh, my gosh! Absolutely. Well, I should say that many of the medications are the same. So we talked about rescue medications and those were around when I was a kid.
But there's a whole new group of medications that have recently come out to help treat asthma. And those are injections. Sometimes they're given once a month.
Sometimes they're given once every two weeks. And those medications really do quiet down the immune system and help to make your immune system less reactive to things in the environment that might trigger asthma. It's really making a big difference in the lives of many children.
MOLLY BLOOM: And do you still have asthma?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Actually, I've outgrown my symptoms. So this is another thing, area that's super interesting, which are people like me who had asthma throughout childhood and then, as they turned into adolescence, no longer have symptoms of asthma. And we're still trying to uncover why is that?
MOLLY BLOOM: What do you want kids to know out there who do have asthma?
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Overall, I just want kids to know that asthma is pretty common. Many athletes have asthma and they're still able to be highly functioning and very active. And so asthma should not get in the way of having a super active life.
INDI: Thanks so much for talking with us, Dr. Lovinsky.
STEPHANIE LOVINSKY-DESIR: Oh, it's been absolutely my pleasure. Thank you so much for having me.
[BOUNCY MUSIC]
AUDREY: Asthma is a disease that can make it hard to breathe.
MOLLY BLOOM: In someone with asthma, the little tubes that carry air from their windpipe into their lungs are extra sensitive.
INDI: These little tubes are called bronchi. They can get irritated and swell up for lots of different reasons, like if someone's exercising or is allergic to something.
MOLLY BLOOM: A special device called a rescue inhaler can send medicine into the lungs.
AUDREY: That helps relax the muscles around the bronchi to make it easier to breathe.
MOLLY BLOOM: Lots of people with asthma also use a daily medication to keep symptoms under control.
INDI: People are more likely to get asthma if other people in their family have it or if they live in a place with lots of pollution.
MOLLY BLOOM: Doctors and scientists are trying to find better treatments for asthma, and are working to prevent so many people from getting it in the first place.
AUDREY: That's it for this Brains On episode.
MOLLY BLOOM: This episode was written by--
NICO GONZALEZ WISLER: Nico Gonzalez Wisler.
MOLLY BLOOM: Our editors are--
SANDEN TOTTEN: Sanden Totten.
MOLLY BLOOM: And--
SHAHLA FARZAN: Shahla Farzan.
MOLLY BLOOM: Fact checking by--
ROSIE DUPONT: Rosie DuPont.
MOLLY BLOOM: We had engineering help from Daniel Kassulke and Derek Ramirez, with sound design by--
RACHEL BREES: Rachel Brees.
MOLLY BLOOM: Original theme music by--
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
INDI: We had production help from the rest of the Brains On universe team.
MOLLY BLOOM: Molly Bloom.
ROSIE DUPONT: Rosie DuPont.
ANNA GOLDFIELD: Anna Goldfield.
RUBY GUTHRIE: Ruby Guthrie.
LAUREN HUMPERT: Lauren Humpert.
JOSHUA RAY: Joshua Ray.
MARC SANCHEZ: Marc Sanchez.
CHARLOTTE TRAVER: Charlotte Traver
ANNA WEIGEL: Anna Weigel.
INDI: And--
ARON WOLDESLASSIE: Aron Woldeslassie.
MOLLY BLOOM: Beth Perlman is our executive producer. And the executives in charge of APM Studios are Chandra Kavati and Joanne Griffith. Special thanks to Joy Dolo, Kirstie and Brett Patterson, Mary [? Oropecan, ?] Virginia Smith, and Rebecca Rand.
AUDREY: Brains On is a nonprofit public radio program.
MOLLY BLOOM: There are lots of ways to support the show. Subscribe to Brains On Universe on YouTube, where you can watch animated versions of some of your favorite episodes, or head to brainson.org.
INDI: While you're there, you can send us mystery sounds, drawings, and questions.
MOLLY BLOOM: Audrey, Indi, are you ready to hear the mystery sound again?
INDI: Yes.
AUDREY: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: All right, let's hear it.
[SPLASH, SQUELCH]
What are our new thoughts?
AUDREY: I think I'm staying with the same, playing with something like slime or Play-Doh?
MOLLY BLOOM: Lovely guess. What do you think, Indi? What's your guess?
INDI: Someone slurping up something.
MOLLY BLOOM: Slurping. What do you think they're slurping up?
INDI: Probably like spaghetti or something.
MOLLY BLOOM: Oh, yeah, spaghetti is a very slurpy food. Yeah, I have no idea what this is. Definitely sounds wet whatever it is, maybe. Someone walking through a swamp.
AUDREY: Or mud.
MOLLY BLOOM: Maybe. I don't know. Should we hear the answer?
BOTH: Yes.
MOLLY BLOOM: All right. Here it is.
MILES: Hi. My name is Miles and I'm from Beaverton, Oregon. That was the sound of me washing my hands with soap.
MOLLY BLOOM: [GASP]
Washing hands with soap? I wash my hands. You must wash your hands. But that was so hard. Why was that so hard?
AUDREY: I hear it now.
MOLLY BLOOM: Yes, of course. I'm giving us partial credit, though because we heard something wet. We just didn't know what that wet thing was.
INDI: Yeah.
AUDREY: Yes.
[SPLASH, SQUELCH]
MOLLY BLOOM: Now it's time for the Brains Honor Roll. These are the incredible kids who keep the show going with their questions, ideas, mystery sounds, drawings, and high fives.
[LISTING HONOR ROLL]
MAN 4: (SINGING) Brains On. Brains On.
MOLLY BLOOM: We'll be back next week with an episode all about solar power.
BOTH: Thanks for listening.
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