The Romanian Foundation for Children, Community and Family and OZONE Foundation Help Asthmatic Children

OZONE Foundation and the Romanian Foundation for Children, Community and Family ( FRCCF ) provide an annual salt mine treatment to children from Cluj-Napoca who have serious respiratory problems. This programme has been carried out since 2000.

The treatement benefits 40 children who attend the FRCCF community centres and who come from low income families. The children are selected by the general preactitioner and social workers of the foundation. In September, they will undergo a 9-day treament at the salt mine from Turda. The children will leave Cluj-Napoca to go to the salt mine each morning, they will stay there for a 4-hour treatment, then they will come back to Cluj.

“Bronchitic asthma is a very serious disease which prevents children from doing their everyday work normally. For this reason, it is very important for them to benefit from an yearly salt mine treatment in order to make sure their health condition doesn't get worse , to feel well every day and to depend less on medication. We are extremely pleased to see that, for most children, the symptoms of this disease have significantly improved or completely vanished after the first years of treatment ”, said Camelia Mates, PR Director FRCCF .

The latest research run by the foundation on the general health of its beneficiaries shows that almost 16% of them suffer from respiratory conditions (bronchitic asthma, different types of bronchitis, frequent colds and tuberculosis). These are often associated with other diseases, like cardiovascular, digestive, rheumatic or phsychic ones. This is all due to their precarious living conditions and lack of proper food. Moreover, besides the children, their parents or other family members suffer from these conditions ( FRCCF Beneficiaries' Health Status , The Romanian Foundation for Children, Community and Family, 10 th of August 2006).

“It is the first time that OZONE Foundation supports this programme and we are very happy that we can help children with bronchitic asthma to lead a normal life . We want to become a constant supporter of this treatment programme so that many children suffering from this disease benefit from proper treatment, ” asserted Georgiana Grecu, Executive Director of OZONE Foundation.

“The studies conducted on patients from several salt mine-based centres confirmed the efficiency of the treatment for 60-90% of the patients suffering from bronchitic asthma. The salt mine air makes wonders for respiratory conditions, especially for bronchitic asthma, trachea bronchitis, chronic and recurrent bronchitis, sinusitis and rhinitis. The physical effort made in the salt mine strengthens the immune system (mainly the respiratory system), adjusts the body weight, and renders children cheerful and positive”, says Mihaela Bancescu, FRCCF GP .

Until now, an average of 38 children did this treatment each year. Most of them have been benefiting from this programme since 2000 as they need this yearly cure.

Throughout those 9 days of treatment, the children are closely watched by the social worker who is in charge of the project. They play different games, like volleyball, football, badmington, which keep them busy for four hours and enhance the treatment benefits thanks to long, deep breaths.

About OZONE Foudation

OZONE Foundation was set up in December 2005 and works to educate people about the self-medication phenomenon. Moreover, during last year's “For Sensible Self-Medication”, OZONE Foundation carried out a special project targeting high school students – “Information Is Health. Learn To Be Informed!”. The main supporter of the social campaigns run by OZONE Foundation is the company Ozone Laboratories. www.auto-medicatie.ro