Dubai, United Arab Emirates – A recent study conducted in Canada revealed that owning a dog at home may reduce children’s chances of developing asthma.
But the same rule does not apply to owning cats.
Researchers in Canada studied the case of a thousand children. They collected dust samples from the homes in which they lived when they were several months old.
The samples were tested for three common types of allergens associated with pets.
As part of the study published during the European Respiratory Society conference, children were tested to measure their lung function at the age of five. Researchers also checked whether these children had asthma. Additionally, blood samples were taken from them. This was to see if there were any genetic factors that increased their chances of developing the disease.
Researchers from a hospital specializing in treating children in Toronto, Canada, found that newborns exposed to the allergen F1 have a 48% lower risk of developing asthma. This allergen is associated with owning dogs. Furthermore, their lung functions work well. This is true even if there are genetic factors that increase their risk of developing asthma.
Conversely, researchers did not find that children’s exposure to the allergen Phil D1 has any protective effect on these children. This allergen is associated with owning cats at home.
The Health Day website, which specializes in medical research, quoted Dr. Jacob McCoy from Children’s Hospital in Toronto as saying: “The results of this study indicate that exposure to allergens associated with dogs may prevent ‘allergy’, that is, gaining sensitivity to external influences, by changing the microbial composition inside the nose.” Or by affecting the body’s immune system”.
Asthma is one of the most common chronic diseases in children.
