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Children and their parents can rejoice as the childhood asthma is on a decline in United States. After experiencing a rise for decades, the number of children that reported breathing problems has actually stopped rising. In fact, the numbers have started to fall, said the government analysis. "That was a big surprise," says Lara Akinbami of the National Center for Health Statistics. "We were expecting the increase to kind of continue. But in fact we saw the opposite."

Between 1980s and 1990s, the percentage of children in U.S. witnessed double increase and has been growing ever since at a steady pace. However, the reason for surge of asthma has remained unknown. However, the possible factors include exposure to second hand smoke, weak immunity systems and obesity amongst children. Akinbami and her colleagues saw the change in trend when they first analyzed data obtained from National Health Interview Survey conducted between 2001 and 2003. Among children aged between 17 and younger, asthma reached 9.7% in 2011 and then plateaued in 2013. That year, the it even declined to 8.3%, noted researchers in the journal Pediatrics on Monday. However, what they noticed was that the asthma continues to rise in poor American families and is more common among African-American children than the white ones. 14% and more Afro-American children are suffering from asthma as compared to 8% white children, reported NPR.

Akinbami says that it is not clear whether 2013 is just one of the years that represents fluctuations or is it really beginning to decline. The fall in the asthma rates remains as mysterious as its reason for a rise. Regardless of the reasons, the experts are happy about the shift in trend. "It is good news for kids," says Stephen Teach, chairman of pediatrics at the Children's National Health System in Washington, D.C, as reported by NPR.