A new study shows that rising rate of asthma is now almost 8 per cent of the total US population. However, while asthma rates are going up in general, some US states have much lower rates than other states.

Some individual states have either much higher or much lower asthma rates. For instance, the small state of Rhode Island has an asthma rate of 11 per cent, while Louisiana boasts an asthma rate of just 5 per cent! The national average alone would not reveal these distinct differences.

Study author, Teresa Ann Morrison, looked at asthma data from adults, for the years 2000 to 2008. The data was then broken up into three units – 2000 to 2002, 2003 to 2005 and 2006 to 2008. This allowed for the examination of trends and averages.

Across the US, average asthma rates are rising by 0.5 per cent for every three years. Additional studies will have to be done to see if this trend continues.

Morrison said that the study was not designed to determine why there would be differences in US regions.

Source: Business Week