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Germ exposure & asthma risk - Shorts - Brief Article

Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients, Jan, 2003 by Jule Klotter

A Swiss study, published in The New England Journal of Medicine (September 19, 2002), found that children who live on farms have lower incidence of hay fever and allergy-related asthma than children who also live in rural areas but not on farms. The children, ages 6 to 13, all live in rural areas of Austria, Germany, and Switzerland; 319 live on farms and 493 do not. The research team, led by Dr. Charlotte Braum-Fahrlander of the Institute of Social and Preventive Medicine (Basal, Switzerland), found that 4.1% of the farm children and 10.5% of the non-farm children had hay fever. Only 3.1% of the farm children had allergy-related asthma while 5.9% of the non-farm children did. The researchers attribute the difference to the dirt, manure, and animals found on farms, which expose children to more bacteria.

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To support their hypothesis, the researchers measured the level of endotoxin in dust taken from the children's mattresses. Samples from the farm mattresses had higher levels of endotoxin, used as a marker for bacteria exposure, than those from non-farming homes. Interestingly, the level of endotoxin corresponded directly to the rates of asthma and hay fever. A New York Times article by Denise Grady reported that the children whose mattresses showed the highest endotoxin level had the lowest rate of hay fever ([approximately equal to] 2-3 percent). Those exposed to the lowest endotoxin exposure had the highest hay fever rate ([approximately equal to]15 percent). The researchers say that greater exposure to bacteria, as evidenced by the higher endotoxin levels, may "help an infant's immune system to motive and develop tolerance -- instead of allergies -- to environmental substances like pollen and animal dander."

Grady, Denise. Environment Rich in Germs May Reduce Risk of Asthma. New York Times 2002 September 19

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Germ exposure & asthma risk - Shorts - Brief Article

Townsend Letter for Doctors and Patients, Jan, 2003 by Jule Klotter

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