I've lived in Bakersfield for 10 years. 2 years ago my oldest (9 at the time) got valley fever - a direct result from living in bakersfield. Because of that - she can't exert herself on bad air qualitly days or get overheated (virtually every day in the summer!) So- we spend the summer in Pismo. An interesting medical note, we have her valley fever levels checked several times a year. Everytime we have her checked before we leave for the beach they are a little eleveated, we then have her checked upon our return - almost at 0 - then when they're checked a few months later, elevated again. The Dr @ Kern Co health dept - leading dr w/ valley fever- said it is a direct result of the valley air!

I think the air is a very minute problem. It is a problem none-the-less, but doesn't worry me. I haven't actually seen or heard the results of this air creating some crazy new disease or sickness, or even shortening your life. Then again, what these days can you do without have some disease or sickness from the results of it? I'm pretty sure we should be more worried of getting in our cars each day due to traffic and crazy drivers, then the air that the 'cars' are supposedly effecting entirely. Yeah, cars kill, but not because what drives them, but by who and how they are driven. It's obvious, Bakersfield is in a slump, or hole, and we get unwanted opportunity of having the other cities (LA especially) air being caught up in our hole. It's not entirely our fault. Like I said, I'm more worried of getting and my car and being endured in an accident, then the air I breathe.

I've only lived in Bakersfield for two months and my son already had asthma before we got here, but I do have to say it's gotten much worse since we arrived. Where before he usually only had asthma attacks when he caught colds, now he starts wheezing every time he physically exerts himself. Anybody out there got some suggestions for preventing a 3-year-old from running and jumping? Cuz I got nothin. So he runs, he wheezes. One follows the other as surely as night follows day.

I wouldn't say the air quality here is a reason to move right away, but it's compelling enough for me to feel like I have to move eventually. Staying here permanently with an asthmatic son simply isn't an option.

Besides, California has some beautiful mountains. Be nice if I could see them.

I don't know what the long term effects will be, but I do know that if my whole family didn't live here I would be out!!!  Just looking at the air makes me want to cry for my son's health.  I feel bad taking him running in it everyday, but it's kind of hard to shelter him from the air.  I think that it does have an ill effect on our breathing and and allergies. In fact my son has had a clear runny nose for 2 weeks now, just as soon as the allergy season started.  IT makes me frustrated, but at this time there is not much I can do about it, but choose times to be outside wisely.  But it's true as you said, whose to say the air did cause those allergies and your kids wouldn't of had it anywhere else.  I can't really stick up for our pollution here though :(

We love Bakersfield for child-raisability.  Someone would have to show me results that said something drastic, like "If you grow up in Bakesfield, you will die at 40."  Otherwise, if we are talking a handful of years difference and even that would be unproven, then I'm not going pack up and move.  Or if you were to say to me, "studies have proven that growing up in Bakersfield causes cancer," then that would mean something.  But like you, I hear the Bakersfield-has-bad-air statements, but since nobody is walking around with gas masks, the government has not quaranteened the city, and I can breath with no pain, it just doesn't bother me.

As the information age continues to snowball out of control, a side effect is that we get all these studies and statistics that nobody knew before.  It causes us to worry, and that is probably the bigger of the health risk factors.  But that's just me.

Very touchy issue in my house! We lived in the Inland Empire and moved here when my son was 2 1/2 and my daughter was 2 months.  And if my husband was the sole decision maker, he'd have us out here specifically because of the air quality. One of his selling points for getting me to move here, was for the "cleaner air". ha! Little did he know........My son went an entire year down South without EVER catching a cold/flu.. etc. We moved here and he was sick for what felt like NON-STOP.  He was eventually diagnosed with Asthma, he has a very, very long list of allergies and the air/pollen and such is not doing much for my husband's allergies. I keep getting told that if I didn't have allergies when I moved here, I will eventually. It's been 3 years and so far, nothing for me. My daughter gets croup pretty often, which her pediatrican told me happens to children who eventually get diagnosed with Asthma. So.. the whole point of the above paragraph:

Did this all happen because of Bakersfield's air? We'll never know. BUT I would not be surprised if it did. I read an article last year giving the percentage of people out here that have Asthma. I can't remember the exact number, but it was VERY high.  And being the 2nd worst in the country for air quality, that just depresses me.