What two (or more) quotes capture the message of the article?
“In New York City’s East Harlem, a startling 19 percent of 5-year-olds have asthma, according to a report from the New York City Department of Health.”
“Cockroaches carry proteins in their saliva, body parts and feces that are a source of powerful allergies. These proteins go airborne where they can be easily inhaled. Allergic reactions can range from a skin rash to an asthma attack.”
“Exposure to a certain type of air pollution found in diesel exhaust and other combustion-related byproducts can increase the likelihood of developing a cockroach allergy.”
What is the main point of the article, and how is it supported?
The main point of the article is that an allergy to cockroaches is one of the number one risk factors for asthma, and that the majority of the time, this cockroach allergen only leads to allergy in children whose mothers have been exposed to combustion byproducts during pregnancy. This point was supported by the results of the study by Matt Perzanowski of Columbia University.
What actors (individuals or organizations) are referred to? (Provide names and short descriptions.)
Cockroaches: the allergen in the study
Children: tested for the impact of the cockroach allergen
Women: tracked for 15 years by the researchers, from pregnancy through the first seven years of the child’s lives
What kind of causation or responsibility is argued or implied in the article?
A causation that is implied in the article is that the high level of cockroach allergen has a much higher chance of leading to allergy in children when the mothers are exposed to combustion byproducts during their pregnancy, showing the relationship between air pollution and the impact of the cockroach allergen in children.
How (if at all) are health disparities or other equity issues addressed in the article or report?
The equity issue addressed in the article is the fact that pests, such as roaches, are “disproportionately found in lower income areas.” The article discussed how buildings that are more populated with people are more likely to be infested by roaches. The equity issue lies in the socioeconomic factor displayed in the article. People at a socioeconomic disadvantage are the ones living in these infested and densely packed buildings, and therefore, they are the ones that are affected by the roaches that infest those buildings. Though the issues could be prevented by “pest management” and “sealing holes in walls so that cockroaches can’t get through,” these methods cost money that most families living in those buildings don’t have.
There is also a disparity in the fact that 19% of 5 year old children in East Harlem have asthma, while only 6% of 5 year olds in the Upper East Side have asthma. This sheds light on the fact that children that are growing up in locations that are very close to one another, are experiencing extremely different health factors impacting their lives.
What three points, details or references from the article did you follow up on to advance your understanding of the issued and actors described in the article?
I followed up on other ways in which socioeconomic disadvantages impact the health of families in NYC, the disparity between kids in East Harlem and the Upper East Side, and what intervention could be conducted early on in the lives of these children to limit the negative impact of the cockroach allergen in their health.
Samrin Ali
Full citation and link
Marder, Jenna, “Air Pollution Boosts a Child’s Chance of Getting Cockroach-Related Asthma,” PBS NEWSHOUR, Feb. 6, 2013.
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/in-new-york-citys/
What two (or more) quotes capture the message of the article?
“In New York City’s East Harlem, a startling 19 percent of 5-year-olds have asthma, according to a report from the New York City Department of Health.”
“Cockroaches carry proteins in their saliva, body parts and feces that are a source of powerful allergies. These proteins go airborne where they can be easily inhaled. Allergic reactions can range from a skin rash to an asthma attack.”
“Exposure to a certain type of air pollution found in diesel exhaust and other combustion-related byproducts can increase the likelihood of developing a cockroach allergy.”
What is the main point of the article, and how is it supported?
The main point of the article is that an allergy to cockroaches is one of the number one risk factors for asthma, and that the majority of the time, this cockroach allergen only leads to allergy in children whose mothers have been exposed to combustion byproducts during pregnancy. This point was supported by the results of the study by Matt Perzanowski of Columbia University.
What actors (individuals or organizations) are referred to? (Provide names and short descriptions.)
Cockroaches: the allergen in the study
Children: tested for the impact of the cockroach allergen
Women: tracked for 15 years by the researchers, from pregnancy through the first seven years of the child’s lives
What kind of causation or responsibility is argued or implied in the article?
A causation that is implied in the article is that the high level of cockroach allergen has a much higher chance of leading to allergy in children when the mothers are exposed to combustion byproducts during their pregnancy, showing the relationship between air pollution and the impact of the cockroach allergen in children.
How (if at all) are health disparities or other equity issues addressed in the article or report?
The equity issue addressed in the article is the fact that pests, such as roaches, are “disproportionately found in lower income areas.” The article discussed how buildings that are more populated with people are more likely to be infested by roaches. The equity issue lies in the socioeconomic factor displayed in the article. People at a socioeconomic disadvantage are the ones living in these infested and densely packed buildings, and therefore, they are the ones that are affected by the roaches that infest those buildings. Though the issues could be prevented by “pest management” and “sealing holes in walls so that cockroaches can’t get through,” these methods cost money that most families living in those buildings don’t have.
There is also a disparity in the fact that 19% of 5 year old children in East Harlem have asthma, while only 6% of 5 year olds in the Upper East Side have asthma. This sheds light on the fact that children that are growing up in locations that are very close to one another, are experiencing extremely different health factors impacting their lives.
What three points, details or references from the article did you follow up on to advance your understanding of the issued and actors described in the article?
I followed up on other ways in which socioeconomic disadvantages impact the health of families in NYC, the disparity between kids in East Harlem and the Upper East Side, and what intervention could be conducted early on in the lives of these children to limit the negative impact of the cockroach allergen in their health.