America's Worst Asthma Cities

(WebMD)  Knoxville, Tenn., tops the list of the 100 most challenging U.S. cities for people living with asthma.

Memphis, Tenn., and Louisville, Ky., took the second and third spots in the second annual ranking of U.S. asthma cities. Washington, D.C. jumped from number 50 last year to number five in this year's list.

Researchers say more than half of the 20 million Americans with asthma suffer from the allergic form of the disease, which is aggravated by exposure to allergens like pollen, dust mites, and mold.

In compiling the 2005 U.S. asthma cities list, the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America ranked the top 100 metropolitan areas in the country based on 12 asthma risk, medical, and prevalence factors, such as:

Estimated and reported prevalence of asthma

Asthma-related deaths

Annual pollen level

Annual air quality

Public smoking laws

Number of asthma specialists

School asthma-inhaler access laws

Uninsured rate

Poverty rate

Based on those factors, the following cities were ranked number four through 10 behind Knoxville, Memphis and Louisville: Toledo, Ohio, Washington, D.C., St. Louis, Mo., Allentown, Pa., Springfield, Mass., Grand Rapids, Mich. and Scranton, Pa.

Cites considered best for asthma sufferers based on the survey: San Francisco, Miami, Daytona Beach, Fla., Denver, Seattle, West Palm Beach, Fla., Dallas-Ft. Worth, Fort Meyers, Fla., Colorado Springs, Colo., Melbourne, Fla.


SOURCES: The U.S. Asthma Capitals, Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. News release, Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.


By Jennifer Warner, WebMD Medical News
Reviewed by Michael W. Smith, MD
© 2005, WebMD Inc. All rights reserved