Who am I?
The name’s Bert. You may have seen me around before. My face is on the asthma & allergy friendly® Certification Mark that’s on thousands of product packages, on national TV commercials, and in every major store across the country.
What is the Certification Mark?
The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) is the leading national nonprofit organization fighting asthma and allergic diseases. AAFA partners with Allergy Standards Limited (ASL)—a physician-led, scientific certification organization—to run the asthma & allergy friendly® Certification Program. Together, AAFA and ASL created this program in the U.S. to:
- Help you find truthful product claims about asthma and allergies when you’re buying products;
- Raise standards to make products more suitable for you and your loved ones;
- Encourage manufacturers to innovate in the asthma and allergy market; and
- Educate you and your family, as well as manufacturers, about asthma and allergy issues.
So what is the issue?
It is estimated that, altogether, families like yours spend more than $10 billion annually on products such as vacuums, air cleaners, bedding, flooring, and toys that you believe will reduce asthma and allergy triggers in your homes. However, you are rarely provided with sufficient evidence that asthma and allergy marketing statements made by manufacturers are valid. This lack of information often makes it difficult to make an educated purchase and confuses the real features and benefits of a product.
The asthma & allergy friendly® Certification Program aims to help you close this information gap by independently testing products in accredited laboratories to scientifically prove which are more suitable for you and your family.
But what’s the blog for?
Although the science behind certification is vital, there’s one program goal that requires some much deserved attention: issue awareness and education. With Bert’s Blog®, I will take the science of certification and talk about it with you so that we can all better understand what it means to be Certified asthma & allergy friendly®.
But that’s not all I’ll write about. My blog will also be a great channel for us to discuss tips, asthma and allergy news and resources, Q&As, newly certified products and services, and more. I’ll also have guest bloggers from AAFA and ASL who will talk about manufacturer tips and new certification standards that could lead to more Certified products.
Let us know what you think! Have a topic you’d love to see covered? Curious why a vacuum, air cleaner, or other product is Certified asthma & allergy friendly®? Leave us your thoughts in the comments below.