The diagnosis and treatment of the illness many times begins with a families diligence in monitoring symptoms and taking note of a child's triggers.

One Grand Traverse County family knows first hand what it means to deal with the diagnosis.

"We started seeing our pediatrician for Asthma at about eight months," says Jennifer Rinehart, "some of the symptoms were kind of grasping for air, we had a runny nose a lot, we started thinking it was allergies, but it didn't turn out to be that."

Now nearly three years old, Ashley Rinehart and her family stick to strict schedule of therapies and medications to keep Ashley's Asthma under control. "We are really good at being proactive instead of reactive," explains Jennifer, "it's much easier to do the medications every day at the same time then it is to go into an attack and then be reactive to what is going on."

Doctor John Schuen, a specialist at Helen DeVos Children's Hospital,  says diagnosing an infant with the illness takes diligence from the parents and doctors.  "We like to see three different separate episodes of coughing or wheezing or shortness of breath separated by some space and time," says Dr. Schuen, "and it's important to get a chest x-ray to look at the lungs as well as to rule out other things like allergies, cystic fibrosis, and birth defects."

The work doesn't end with the diagnoses but also what triggers an attack. "It's really important for the families to be the private detectives if you will,  and look when they see their child having an asthma attack looking at the events that proceeded that you look at what they were doing," Dr. Schuen explains. "It's very clear that Asthma can be treated and that our parents and families can be the boss of the asthma and not the other way around."

Jennifer says that even at her young age, Ashley pays close attention to her health concern. "Ashley is very good at limiting herself.  She knows that she can only run and play so long and when she starts breathing the way she does if she is going to have an attack," explains Jennifer.  "She is very good at knowing her limits and stopping and saying 'I need to rest I need to take a break'. It's fortunate and unfortunate that at the age of three she is that in tune with what she has going on but she doesn't know life anything else."

Asthma can be diagnosed at any age.

Some of the most common symptoms include: coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing and chest pain.