Tuesday, January 18, 2005

Asthma linked to gestation

Exposure to allergens in the womb might be a more significant factor than exposure after birth in deciding whether youngsters develop the conditions later in childhood, it is suggested.
Researchers measured the levels of antibodies to allergens found in the umbilical cord blood of 1 300 babies born on the Isle of Wight between 1989 and 1990.
They then checked up on their progress at the ages of one, two, four and ten.
They found that at four, one in five children had become sensitised to allergens and at 10 the figure was more than one in four (27%).

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