Welcome  to  the  Public  Health  moment from  the  University  of  Minnesota. May  is  often  the  time  when  people  with asthma  notice  that  their  symptoms  worsen. Prevention  is  the  first  step in  keeping  those  symptoms  in  check, says  Ian  Greaves,  a University  of  Minnesota  Professor of  Environmental  Health  Sciences. Prevention  is  always  a  good  way  to  go  and  we  can  avoid those  things  that  we  know  are  going  to  cause  us problems  like  certain  grasses  and  pollens. But  we  can't  really  stay  cooped  up  inside  all  the  time. And  there  are  some  simple  medications which  help  with  the  mild  symptoms. Medications  like  antihistamines,  but anything  more  severe  than  a  sniffle, a  sneeze,  itchy  eyes, a  little  bit  of  a  cough  probably means  we  need  to  see  a  local. Dr.  Greaves  says  that  while researchers  don't  really  know  why  asthma  is  on  the  rise, he  says  allergies  are  likely. One  reason  he  adds  that indoor  air  pollutants  can  be  just as  problematic  for  asthma  sufferers. But  we  shouldn't  forget  that  seasonal  symptoms are  not  just  the  only  problems  that  asthmatics  have. They  have  ongoing  allergies from  house  dust  and  mold  in  homes. So  even  though  we  focus  on the  outside  air  at  this  time  of  year, it's  often  the  inside  air  that  causes most  asthma  problems  year round  with  another  public  health  moment. I'm  John  Finnegan.