I’m actually surprised this NPR piece didn’t go into detail on how hotcoldwetdry is making asthma worse
Could better asthma inhalers help patients, and the planet too?
During an asthma check-up at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Joel Rubinstein gets a surprising pitch — for the planet, as well as his health.
His pulmonologist, Dr. Miguel Divo, explains that the familiar boot-shaped respiratory inhalers, which represent nearly 90% of the U.S. market for asthma medication, save lives but also contribute to climate change.
Each puff from that type of inhaler releases a hydrofluorocarbon gas that is 1,430 to 3,000 times as powerful as the most commonly known greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide.
“That absolutely never occurred to me,” says Rubinstein, a retired psychiatrist. “Especially, I mean, these are little, teeny things.”
Divo has begun offering a more eco-friendly option to some patients with asthma and other lung diseases: a handheld plastic disk about the size and shape of a hockey puck that contains powdered medicine. Patients suck the powder into their lungs — no puff of gas required, and no greenhouse gas emissions.
I’m doubting most asthma sufferers care: they just want to fix the issue now. And, I swear, if my doctor brought something like this up in terms of my allergy meds or anything else, I’d be switching doctors. And wondering what company is paying them to push this doomsday cult claptrap
Rubinstein is one of a small number of U.S. patients who have made the transition. Among Divo’s patients, only about a quarter would even consider switching.
The reasons vary, Divo explains. Dry powder inhalers are often more expensive than gas propellant inhalers. For some, dry powder isn’t a good option because not all asthma or COPD sufferers can get their medications in this form. And dry powder inhalers aren’t recommended for young children or elderly patients with diminished lung strength.
Yeah, cost. Obama era regulations have already forced a change from chlorofluorocarbon type to the hydrofluorocarbon type, which is more expensive, and now want asthmatics to pay more. This is not the first post I’ve done over the years about the climate cult whining about inhalers
Changing inhaler technology largely voluntary, not mandatory
For now. But, as Government passes regulations it essentially becomes mandatory, because you cannot get the old types except, possibly, in extreme cases for heavy sufferers.
When inhaler costs went up, physicians say, patients cut back on puffs and suffered more asthma attacks. Gregg Furie, medical director for climate and sustainability at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, worries that’s about to happen again.
“While these new propellants are potentially a real positive development, there’s also a significant risk that we’re going to see patients and payers face significant cost hikes,” Furie says.
These cultists care more about their scam than actual humans.
Asthmatics should just give up all their meds. If they also give up their gas stoves, they will probably be just fine.
If they give up all the meds, including inhalers, many will die. And yes, asthmatics would benefit by NOT having gas flames in their houses.
If patients can stay healthy without adding these potent GHG to the atmosphere, why not? European nations do just that.
As usual, the term “drop in the bucket” is utterly inadequate to describe both the contribution to GHG emissions and any potential impact even a complete elimination of the inhalers might be.
Divide undetectable by 1,430 to 3,000, that should about cover it.
Matthew,
Thank you for your research. You may be right.
We recommend you multiply, rather than divide, the concentration of the gas TIMES 1,430 to 3,000 to estimate its comparison to carbon dioxide.
HFCs make up about 1% of current GHGs (but not all HFCs come from asthma inhalers). Industries are converting to hydrofluoroolefins (HFOs) which have low greenhouse gas potential.
I don’t have asthma, and can’t really understand how they feel, but I can kind of imagine what it would be like to suddenly be unable to breathe.
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The inhaler I use requires that you place the inhaler in your mouth and suck the powder into the lungs. There’s another one that the user places in their mouth and depresses a valve sending the drug directly into the lungs. Me thinks the man protests too much.
Lets explain the reasoning behind wanting to get rid of the current inhalers. Many years ago such inhalers were a combination of a medication and a “propellant” that would allow the medication to be pushed into your lungs…inhaled. The propellant was usually a form of HFC. This propellant was labelled a “greenhouse gas” by the EPA. When this happened that allowed the Big Pharma companies that produced these inhalers, the most popular one being Albuterol, to reformulate them with a new propellant. Once that happened the Albuterol millions of asthmatics relied upon ceased being a generic drug costing $5-10 and became NON generic….and the price skyrocketed. Now that the “new”
formulation has been out for years and is approaching “generic” status where the profits would drop Big Pharma is again pushing for a “mandate” to change the propellant, so they can keep the price of a desperately needed medication high. It’s ALL ABOUT PROFITS. Nothing else. And the EPA and greenies are happy to oblige Big Pharma.