Imagine the feeling of gasping for breath, frantically attempting to draw air into your desperate lungs, and then proving completely unsuccessful in your efforts. For anyone who has ever suffered an asthma attack, this feeling is a common occurrence. Now, imagine that deep chest cough that occasionally accompanies pneumonia or the flu. Imagine the pain as you attempt to clear the disease-causing phlegm from your lungs (often unsuccessfully). This is the feeling of chronic bronchitis, a disease that results in incessant, lung-damaging coughing.

Neither of these feelings is pleasant, and they are certainly anything but desirable. Although we cannot always avoid an occasional gasp for breath or a chest-wracking cough, we would certainly not invite these symptoms into our lives. Yet, we are consistently inviting a cause of these symptoms into our homes and into our bodies. Chlorine, a common element of most municipal water, is also a common cause of asthma and chronic bronchitis. Its poisonous fumes infiltrate the body and cause irreparable damage to the lungs each time we shower in unfiltered water or breathe in vapors from the dishwasher or washing machine.

Fortunately, there are two simple solutions to chlorine fumes in the home: shower filters and whole house water filters. Before analyzing the solution of shower filters and whole house water filters, however, let’s first briefly examine the incidence and effects of asthma and chronic bronchitis in the United States.

Asthma
Asthma is a disease of the lungs that currently affects seven percent of the U.S. population (approximately 20 million persons). It is characterized by "attacks", or episodic inflammation of the airways, that can make breathing incredibly difficult or nearly impossible. An asthma attack occurs when the hyperactive muscles in the airway of an asthmatic quickly contract, due to exposure to common irritants. Specialized cells within the airways then release substances that stimulate the secretion of thick mucus in response to irritants. A combination of factors such as these results in clogged or contracted airways that allow very little air to pass through.

Most cases of asthma occur in children, and a good percentage of these children "grow out" of the disease during their teenage years. However, the disease never truly leaves the body, and adults who suffered from asthma as children can be subject to attacks when exposed to irritants. In addition, adults can contract asthma later in life. These cases of asthma are often due to continuous exposure to irritants or to a change of health status, such as after a surgery or during a pregnancy.

Cases of asthma are on the rise worldwide. For children, asthma results in more hospital and emergency room visits than any other problem. The cough that often occurs as a result of asthma (as the body tries to clear clogged airways) can result in permanent damage to the lungs. This damage can cause symptoms similar to more life-threatening diseases like emphysema and chronic bronchitis. While asthma was formerly believed to be reversible, it is now commonly accepted among most physicians that persistent attacks result in irreversible damage to the lungs. Because asthma is irreversible, the best solution is to limit exposure to irritants that can aggravate or even cause asthma, including chlorine.

Chronic Bronchitis
Chronic bronchitis is somewhat difficult to define as a specific disease with specific symptoms, but physicians generally characterize it as an illness in which a patient complains of a persistent, productive cough that occurs for several months of the year for at least two years in a row. Chronic bronchitis affects about five percent of the population in the U.S., or about 15 million persons.

Chronic bronchitis occurs when the bronchial tree (the system of airways in the lungs) has been irritated for a great amount of time. The lining of the airways becomes inflamed and begins to thicken, causing difficulty in breathing. Inflammation of the bronchial tree also results in increased production of mucus, which further clogs airways. This mucus can result in the persistent need to cough, in order to clear the airways.

Despite the removal of mucus through productive coughing, increased mucus production can occur for several months at a time. Mucus can then become a fertile place for bacteria to grow, resulting in the exa