The children seemed scarcely interested in the classroom discussion on asthma until Eric Kriner brought out the pig lungs.
"Ewwwwww," they exclaimed while huddling with wide eyes around the red, wrinkled blob that had been preserved for demonstrations. Then Kriner, a clinical education director at Prince George's Community College, attached a squeeze pump to the lungs and blew them up like balloons.
"Look at it!"
"Awesome!"
"Can I touch them? I eat pork!"
It was Monday morning, and Camp Superkids, an annual, weeklong residential camp for Maryland youngsters with asthma, had gotten off to a gross start - just the way kids like it.
The group of mostly 7- to 10-year-olds were so delighted by the lung demonstration that their moods had clearly shifted from that of moments earlier, when Kriner asked what it felt like to have asthma and some solemnly spoke of breathing difficulties, burning throats and being rushed to the hospital.
That is the aim of this week's camp, which is sponsored by the American Lung Association of Maryland. It brings together children ages 7 to 12, to teach them about their disease and how they can control it.
What better way to do that than at a 54-acre campground in Laytonsville in Montgomery County, complete with miniature golf, swimming pool, and an arts and crafts room, decorated in pirates motif to coincide with this year's camp theme, "Asthma Overboard."
For most of the youngsters, asthma is an albatross - a painful, sometimes frightening ailment that undermines some of the joys of being a kid. The ALA of Maryland has sought to make learning about the disease a better experience.
For more than 20 years, it has hosted the camp with the hopes of empowering youngsters through education, which they believe will ultimately help to manage their disease and avoid potentially fatal attacks.
The youngsters receive two asthma education classes each day. Kriner, who also teaches at PGCC, makes the instructions as visually oriented as possible, hence the inflated lungs, to demonstrate to the youngsters what happens to the air they breathe. Most appeared to know little about the respiratory system when the instruction began. When it was done, they were familiar with terms like "windpipe" and "bronchial tubes."
"Those lungs were freaky," Montreze Marseille, 8, of Baltimore said after the instruction.
The youngsters learn about the common triggers of an asthma episode, including cigarette smoke, chalk dust, colds and flu, exercise, pets, plants and cleaning products. They learn to recognize those triggers and to have their medication ready should one trigger an attack.
The children are taught not only how the respiratory system works, but how to recognize the symptoms of an attack - tightness of the chest, wheezing - and how to respond accordingly.
Heather Dougherty, development associate for the ALA of Maryland, said the group hopes that children with parents who smoke will educate them about the dangers to their respiratory systems. She added that the children are encouraged to compete in various activities, but to monitor their breathing during the activity, and if necessary, to receive medication afterward.
It may take a while for the information to settle in, so Kriner and the other instructors repeat much of it throughout the week, until by tomorrow when the camp ends, the kids can recite much of the instruction with ease.
"With asthma, it's not a treatable disease, but it is a manageable disease," said Mullins. "What we want to do is talk to the kids about their particular type of asthma in terms of what their symptoms are.
"The whole point of the camp is to show kids - and a lot of them have really severe asthma - that they don't have to be limited in a situation with a lot of asthma triggers," Mullins added. "And triggers for kids with asthma can include things like heat, exercise, stress, nature, being out where there's grass and different things outside. Here, they learn how to manage the asthma, and they get a lot of one-on-one care and education that most of us don't get from our physicians."
There are 54 youngsters at this year's camp. Most are from the Baltimore area, but a few are from Frederick, Caroline and Dorchester counties. They were referred by school nurses, physician's offices and asthma clinics.
The Maryland Asthma Control Program says that 10.2 percent of the state's children have had a history of asthma. In 2004, the last year for which figures were available, there were about 8,700 asthma-related hospitalizations (involving patients of all ages) and about 36,000 emergency room visits, program officials said.
But at Camp Superkids, they're just regular kids, inquisitive, full of energy and prone to speaking despairingly about the siblings they left back home. Mullins said some of the kids became teary when their parents dropped them off on Sunday evening and a few complained of being homesick.
Yet that condition was easily cured with activities. They included a karate class taught by three counselors who are Marines and who take part in the camp as part of the Marine Corps community outreach. Using inflated pirate dolls, they showed the kids how to defend themselves in an attack, then cautioned them to avoid confrontations before using what they learned.
Judging from the kids' enthusiasm, the camp activities undoubtedly beat staying at home.
"They tell you how to take care of yourself when you have asthma," said Katelyn Montanaro, 8, of Essex. "My dad is a counselor here and he said, 'Hey, my daughter has asthma, too, can she come?' So I came here. I like it so far. The pool is really cool."
Eighty percent of the children attend the $300-per-person camp on scholarship. Many come from low-income households and are among the flora and fauna for the first time. They awaken each morning at 7 and take their medications before breakfast. In the event that any should become sick, the park has a six-bed infirmary. Montgomery General Hospital is just 8 miles from the campsite.
The camp is staffed by medical personnel - nurses, respiratory therapists - who volunteer. Many of the 34 counselors are Kriner's students from PGCC.
Among the junior counselors is Julia Parreco, 17, of Silver Spring, a high school student who had attended the camp. Once sidelined by her exercise-induced asthma, she says she gained confidence from the camp and went on to play sports in high school.
"It used to be pretty bad when I was running," Parreco said. "But at the camp, it didn't hinder me from getting involved with the activities. I remember that I had a lot of fun and I did learn a lot about asthma."
Adults at the camp find it as gratifying as the youngsters - particularly when they see the progress of former camp members.
"We're giving them the ability to say that instead of watching TV and playing video games they can go outside and play softball and baseball," Dougherty said. "We have so many kids who come to us and say, 'Why me? Why do I have this disease? Why am I always by myself?' But they come here and see that they are surrounded by people just like them and then they realize that they're not alone."
joseph.burris@baltsun.com
COPING WITH ASTHMA
Asthma is a chronic lung disease that affects a person's ability to breathe. Here are a few facts and tips about asthma:
More than 13 percent of adults and 10 percent of children in Maryland have a history of asthma.
For children with asthma, it is important to know what triggers their symptoms. Some examples are stress, dust and certain foods.
If you're a smoker with an asthmatic child, you should quit since exposure to secondhand smoke worsens asthma.
Asthma is the leading cause of school absenteeism, and the third leading cause of hospitalization among children younger than age 15.
An average of 91 Maryland residents die each year from asthma as an underlying cause. Blacks die at a rate three times higher than whites.
The American Lung Association of Maryland offers local programs. Call 800-642-1184 or go to marylandlung.org.[AMERICAN LUNG ASSOCIATION]