402K04900 CArTAIN 310® fcr"^ I ./-L '32 ------- •roe ORIGIN OF MARK PHILLIPS. A Bfi/LUANT PHYSICIAN ANP SCIENTIST; t.OSr AFT£K THE TRANSIT* HE LATE one M<$t-rr, AN ELECTK/CAL STOW* SSMTA BOLT.,. DZVOTSP HIS UF£ TO SOtV/NO ,,.L£AOIN& TO THB eVSLOPMSNTO AMAZ/M5 PIA&NOSTIC US£S THE BfO-MSrER, IT CAPTAIN BIO. THE SUPSP; HSRO eec>/CATeD TO F/6HTIN13 P13SA6E W/Tft/N THE BODY JWPACTIVATES HIS ANP NOW OUR STORX... CAPTAIN BIO®, CLEARING THE AIR, Vol. 5, No. 1, 1996. Published by BIO COMICS®, a registered trademark of Tim Peters and Company. Inc. Copyright 1996 Tim Peters and Company, Inc.. POB 50 Gladstone, NJ 07934 USA. All Rights Reserved. Printed in USA. CAPTAIN BIO® and all prominent characters appearing herein and the distinctive likeness thereof are trademarks of Tim Peters and Company Inc. No part of this book may be printed or reproduced in any manner without the written permission of the publisher. ------- EARLY ONE SATURDAX /MORNING, IN A LARGE CITX PARK... **• .q-V *tf HERE Y^»° CO/MES DEVLIN ' HILL THIS WILL BE N- THE TOUGHEST PART OF THE &&££ NEXT WEEK! P * •>/ *»%, -^X ^1^ \n^i THIS IS OUR LAST RUN... SO LET'S PUSH IT- }A\ \^ // iZ. :^ 2r^ SOON, ONE OF THE RIDERS BESINS TO FALL BEHIND THE RACE... u WHAT'S WRONS WITH ' JENN/?1 SHE'S USUALLY WAY AHEAD OF ME! > J BUT JENN/'S BREATHING FROBLE/M GETS WORSE... CANT SEE/M... TO CATCH /M/ BREATH... BUT WE ONLX HAVE A FEW /MORE ,__ /MILES... /MA/BE I CAN TOUGH IT OUT. UNABLE TO BREATHE PROPERLX, JENNX LOSES CONTROL OF HER BIKE! ------- ------- LUCKILy, DR. /MARK PHILLIPS IS WALKING NEARBY WITH HIS COG... AHEAD.' WHAT 3 I CO?.' SHORTL/IT JENNY, SIT UP 1 AGAINST THIS TREE, AND TRX TO RELAX.' CAN I DO ANYTHING, DOCTOR? /OUR BIKE, CALL FOR HELP, AND LEAD THE PARA/MEDICS BACK HERE WHEN ARRIVE THERE'S AN E/MERGENCy PHONE ABOUT A /MILE UP THE TRAIL I WAS ON... MIGHT 5COI\ OPINION FRO/V\ PHILLIPS NOW HAS ------- k« QUICK, SURGE.' LET'S HURRX DOWN THIS WINDPIPE! WHX THE •%' JENN/'S H/AVING TROUBLE BREATHING! WE NEED TO TAKE /A CLOSER LOOK AT HER LUNGS! WHERE ARE WE NOW, CAP? AS THE/ ENTER ONE OP THE LUNGS... \ I/''' WHAT'S THE SWISS EFFECT, WITH CHEESE CAP? THIS IS WHERE THE WINDPIPE SPLITS INTO TWO /MAJOR AIRWAXS- ONE FOR EACH LUNG! UL THE AIRWAX BRANCHES OUT INTO S/MALLER AND SMALLER TUBES CALLED BRONCHIOLES. THE TINIEST AIR TUBES END WITH LITTLE /<«e •£<(£& CALLED ALVEOLI. THERE ARE /MILLIONS OF AIR SACS IN A HU/MAN LUNG! ------- WHAT HAPPENS IN THE /AIR SACS, CAP? THE SACS ARE SURROUNDED BY SMALL BLOOD VESSELS. /-*w THEN WHEN YOU BREATHE 0Z/T, YOU GET RID OF THE CARBON DIOXIDE! WHEN YOU BREATHE INTO THE AIR SACS, CARBON DIOXIDE FRO/M THE BLOOD IS TRADED FOR FRESH OXYGEN FRO/M THE AIR! RIGHT, SURGE! CAP AND SURGE CONTINUE THE AIRWA/'S WALLS BEGIN TO. GEEZ, CAP! THESE WALLS ARE TWITCHING LIKE CRAZY! THIS LUNG /MUST BE NERVOUS ABOUT HAVING TWO CELEBRITIES FLYING THROUGH IT! VER/ FUNNX SURGE--BUT THIS TWITCHING COULD BE A SERIOU: PROBLE/M FOR JENN DO YOU SEE HOW //Vf&4/H£P THE WALLS ARE? THAT TENDERNESS /MAKES THE /MUSCLES AROUND HER AIRWAyS SQUEEZE ^ CLOSED ------- HOLD ON SURGE! THE WALLS ARE CAVING IN ON ma\ THE /MUSCLES ARE CONSTRICTING AROUND THE AIRWAX-- AL/WOST LIKE A FIST SQUEEZING A DRINKING STRAW! USING ALL THE STRENGTH OF HIS BIO-FIELD, CAP SLOWL/ PUSHES APART THE WALLS OF THE AIRWAX.. QUICK, SUR6E-- /v\ove OUT ------- THANKS, CAP! I COULD HARDLY BREATHE! EXACTLY HOW JBNNY FEELS! S//MPTO/WS INDICATE THAT JENNX IS HAVING AN EPISODE! IS THERE ALWA/5 I SO /MUCH OF THIS THIS STICK/ STUFF IS AND THERE ff A LOT /MORE THAN USUAL! BUT WHAT CAUSED IT? DIFFERENT PEOPLE ARE SENSITIVE TO DIFFERENT SECONDHAND S/WOKE, /MOLD, ANI/MAL DANDER, AND EVEN EXERCISE ARE JUST A FEW. WITHOUT WARNING, A HUGE BLOB BARRELS OUT OF A NEARBX AIRWAX ^H ER... CAP IS THAT WHAT I NO TI/ME TO AVOID IT ------- WHERE DO THINK ALL THAT GUNK CA/WE FRO/W, CAP? , /MUCUS IN THE AIRWA/S HELPS FILTER PARTICLES UNTIL WE COUGH OR SNEEZE THE/M OUT OF THE LUNGS. BUT IF yOU HAVE ASTH/MA, THE AIR WE BREATHE BY STICKING TO W THe LUNGS TO TRIGGERS, PRODUCING /MORE /MUCUS THAN USUAL. M- SO/METWES IT CAN FOR/M P4MS3 THAT BLOCK THE AIRWAyS... \ o IN THIS CASE, JENN/'S COUGHING /MADE THE PLUG BREAK LOOSE! AN/WAX, NOW THAT WE KNOW ABOUT JENN/'S PROBLE/M, I NEED TO GET BACK AND TREAT IT! DR. PHILLIPS REE/MERGES AND RACES TO JENN/'S SIDE... SEE /A, CAP! GOOD) THE PARA/MEDICS ARE HERE! ------- LATER, AT THE HOSPITAL, DR. PHILLIPS CHECKS IN ON JENNy... HOW ARE you FEELING, JENNy? I WISH I KNEW WHAT CAUSED /MX ASTH/MA ATTACK, WELL, WHAT ARE /OUR TRIGGERS? EXERCISE AND COLD WEATHER ARE TWO OF THE/M. JENNX IF yOU TAKE yOUR /MEDICATION AS PRESCRIBED IT WILL HELP PREVENT FUTURE ASTH/MA EPISODES. AND HAVE XOU BEEN TAKING ASTH/V\A /MEDICATION?5 AND By USING yOUR PEAK FLOW /METER REGULARLX yOU CAN /MONITOR ASTH/MA AL/MOST ALWAyS.' BUT BETWEEN SCHOOLWORK AND PRACTICE, I SO/METI/MES FORGET. WELL... I GUESS/W FRIENDS WERE RIGHT. HAVING ASTH/MA AND PLAyiNG SPORTS JUST DON'T /MIX. I NEVER USED TO THINK ABOUT BREATHING. NOW THAT'S Stet I DO. I /MEAN, I WAS A GOOD ATHLETE UNTIL I FOUND OUT THAT I HAVE ASTH/MA. ------- JENNX YOU SHOULDN'T QUIT RACING JUST BECAUSE HAVE ASTHMA! THERE MANY ATHLETES- INCLUDING OLYMP\C CHAMPIONS-- WHO LEAD PRODUCTIVE LIVES DESPITE HAVING ASTHMA! JUST NEED TO /MAKE ASTHMA /MANAGE/WENT PART OF TRAINING ROUTINE. AS FOR THE PEOPLE WHO DOUBT yOU, JUST TELL THE/W THAT yOU CAN TAKE OF youR ASTHMA! IF yOU FOLLOW yOUR ASTHMA /MANAGE/WENT PLAN, yOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO CO/WPETE SPORT! BUT DO yOU THINK I'LL BE READy TO CO/WPETE IN THE NEXT WEEK JENNX ARE SURE yOU WANT TO KEEP RACING? WHAT IF HAVE ANOTHER ASTHMA ATTACK? ONE DAy THE FOLLOWING SO, IS JENNy REALLy GOING TO RACE ON SATURDAy? WEEK, AFTER SCHOOL... THATS WHAT SHE TOLD /1AE T/V\ GOING TO MY ASTHMA, JA/WES. I'M NOT GOING TO LET /T CONTROL /ME! ------- WELL, I THOUGHT IT WAS A GOOD \ \DBA TO LET SO/MEONE V WITH ASTHMA JOIN THE TEA/W. JENNX! UH, SORRX.. NOTHING WHAT IF SHE BLOWS IT FOR US ON SATURC-AX! PONT WORRX I WONT! BUT NOW I CAN PEAL WITH /V\y ASTH/MA" \ll ANO SO SHOULD WE'RE GOING THE SCENERX SEE/MS A LOT NICER THAN THE LAST TI/ME I WAS HERE... ONLy A /MILE TO GO! TI/ME TO GET SERIOUS ------- ------- \\^ R --' / 4 \\ JENNy.' YOU TOOK FIRST PLACE IN /OUR AGE GROUP! WAY TO SO! THANKS/ AND WE WON THE TEA/W COMPETITION TOO.' IT'S A 60OD THINS YOU DIDN'T TAKE Aiy ADVICE AND QUIT AFTER LAST WEEK! HEX ALL I DID WAS OFFER SO/WE ADVICE! THE ONE WHO DECIDED TO TAKE CONTROL OF ASTHMA! %?&t / CONGRATULATIONS, JENNy! - PHILLIPS! W \ -v) H THANK yOU- THANKS ;^^/ R FOR EVERyTHINS! IT WOULDNT HAVE HAPPENED WITHOUT you NOW WE CAN BREATHE EASIER! ------- During normal breathing, the airways to the lungs are open wide, allowing air to pass through freely. But when you have asthma, the airways are extra sensitive to certain "triggers." LEARN ALL YOU CAN ABOUT ASTHMA. \TS> /OUR FIRST STEP TOWARD* CLEARING THE These triggers cause airway changes, and a person may experience shortness of breath, wheezing, and coughing. MUSCLES TIGHTEN LINING BECOMES SWOLLEN C#££ /-800-S43-2230 email: tpc@biocomics.com ht-tp://www.biocomics.com \1 ------- |