UK College of Public Health Researchers Contribute to KET’s “Fighting to Breathe” Series

The new KET “Fighting To Breathe: Lung Health In Kentucky” premieres on Monday, Feb. 21, which is a three-part series that examines the under-told story of lung diseases in Kentucky – the causes, the impact on those afflicted, and the exciting new developments in treatment and prevention.

Steven R. Browning, PhD, Associate Professor, and Beverly May RN, DrPH, Project Manager of the Mountain Air Project (MAP), both at the UK College of Public Health and in the department of epidemiology, contributed to this series.

MAP is a community-based participatory study of respiratory disease in Letcher and Harlan Counties in Kentucky to determine the relative contribution of environmental factors and health behaviors on the burden of asthma and COPD; and to test an intervention to improve asthma control and reduce ER visits.

"The Mountain Air Project was a five-year collaboration between UK researchers and a diverse group of Letcher and Harlan Countians that included community health workers, nurses, non-profit housing agencies, advisory board members and study participants,” says May. “We learned together that such partnerships can lead to effective and affordable strategies for improving asthma outcomes. I'm excited KET viewers will get to see a caring community in action."

KET host, Renee Shaw, interviews Browning about efforts to improve air quality in Eastern Kentucky through the Mountain Air Project, where public health workers made visits to rural households and educated families about ways to improve their indoor ventilation and eliminate contaminants.

“In relationship to the disparities between asthma and COPD, the Commonwealth of Kentucky and Eastern Kentucky are substantially higher compared to the rest of the country,” says Browning. “Our study took a different approach; we went into homes in Letcher and Harlan counties in Eastern Kentucky to get individual data and wanted to look at the mix of factors that were impacting their health status.”

A person’s anatomy of the respiratory system, as well as the resilience and vulnerability of the human lung, inhales, and exhales over 400 liters (about half the volume of a large refrigerator) of air every hour. Thus, the myriad of particles that you are breathing affects your health.

“The factor that best predicts pollutant levels indoors is smoking, which substantially increases the particulate levels in the house,” says Browning.

The Commonwealth has one of the highest rates of lung disease in the nation and is up to 50 percent higher than the national average in some parts of the state. Unfortunately, many people are not aware they have developed COPD, so they miss the opportunity for early treatment. Thus, raising awareness and helping people make better choices is the goal.

“As researchers, we feel good when we raise awareness and develop an infrastructure to educate a group to help address their health,” says Browning. “We are all in this together.”

The “Fighting to Breathe” series airs on Feb. 21 and Feb. 28 and concludes with a KET Forum, also on Feb. 28.

Kentucky Education Television (KET) is Kentucky’s largest classroom, serving more than one million people each week via television, online, and mobile. KET Health, the health division of KET, explores important wellness issues in Kentucky and highlights Kentuckians making a difference.

The UK College of Public Health’s mission is to develop transformative solutions to health challenges through teaching, research, and service efforts to improve the lives of everyone in Kentucky and beyond.