WGBH’s ‘Arthur’ kicks off asthma-fighting campaign

The national numbers on asthma are staggering. The statistics for African American and Latino children in Boston are even worse.

According to the Boston Public Health Commission, black children here under the age of five had six times the number of asthma hospitalizations as white children. Latino children had more than double the number.

It gets worse. Asthma rates are highest for children in Roxbury, Mattapan and Dorchester. The rate of asthma hospitalizations for children under five for Roxbury alone was 81 percent higher than the Boston rate, and it was the highest rate in all Boston neighborhoods.

The reasons for the disparate numbers remain unclear. Triggered by a wide range of substances, including dust, animal dander, cockroaches, perfume, tobacco smoke, weather, molds and other air pollutions, asthma attacks occur when bronchial tubes are inflamed and clogged with mucous. Typical symptoms of asthma are shortness of breath, tightness in the chest, wheezing and fatigue.

To help solve the problem, city health officials, Children’s Hospital and WGBH have joined together to launch a public awareness campaign to provide information and resources to parents and caregivers on effective asthma management.

Last week, Mayor Thomas M. Menino kicked off the “Kids with asthma can …” campaign at Roxbury’s Orchard Gardens K-8 school.

The citywide campaign uses characters from WGBH’s Emmy Award-winning children’s series “Arthur,” and its spin-off series “Postcards from Buster.”

“The important message of this campaign is this,” Menino said in a statement. “Kids with asthma deserve to have a good quality of life. Playing, having fun and getting a good night’s sleep should be goals for all children with asthma.”

In August 2005, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health released a study indicating that nearly 10 percent of the state’s children in kindergarten through eighth grade had been diagnosed with asthma. In several Boston schools, more than 30 percent of the student population had the chronic disease.

“Asthma is the leading chronic disease affecting children in the United States, accounting for an estimated 14 million missed school days each year,” said Margaret Reid, director of the Boston Public Health Commission’s Asthma Prevention and Control program. “What’s more, Boston has double the statewide average of asthma hospitalizations for children under the age of five.”

Campaign organizers said they want to dispel misconceptions about asthma, such as the erroneous belief that children with asthma shouldn’t play sports or that asthma medication should only be taken during an asthma attack.

“We want families to understand that children with well-managed asthma do not need to miss out on learning, playing and being a kid,” said Dr. James Mandell, Children’s Hospital president and chief executive officer.

The new initiative includes the distribution of 30,000 copies of a booklet that includes a storybook version of the “Arthur” television episode when Arthur’s best friend, Buster, learns how to deal with his asthma. The campaign also includes “Healthy Family Nights” at Boston Public Libraries.

“One of WGBH’s core missions is to use media to help children grow,” said Brigid Sullivan, vice president of children’s programming for WGBH. “That’s why we’re pleased to be able to leverage the appeal and popularity of our programs and characters to help initiate a dialogue about asthma, and to spur real change in our community.”

The partners involved with the new campaign are WGBH, Boston Public Health Commission, Children’s Hospital Boston, Boston Public Library, and the Boston Children’s Museum.

National statistics show that about 15 million people have asthma, including 3.5 million children under the age of 15. Between 1980 and 1996, the number of those afflicted increased 77 percent — from 3.1 percent of the population to 5.5 percent.

It is estimated that asthma accounts for 5,000 deaths a year, 500,000 hospitalizations and 2 million emergency room visits. African Americans and Latinos are three times more likely to be hospitalized for asthma or die from asthma than white Americans.