Teenagers know more about asthma than parents

Washingto: Children are more knowledgeable about how one can control asthma than their parents, says a new study.

Teenagers and caretakers have different levels of health literacy, and teenagers do not necessarily obtain their information from caregivers when it comes to managing asthma symptoms.

"We went into the study thinking that parents or caregivers would be an important source of information for teens with asthma, and that their health literacy scores would more or less align," said lead study author Jeana Bush, allergist and member of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) in the US.

"What we found was that there was significant disagreement between the two groups, and, that in certain groups, teens had better health literacy which may mean they are more knowledgeable about controlling asthma than their parents," Bush added.

The study was presented at the ACAAI annual scientific meeting in Atlanta, Georgia.