Domestic animals, whether dogs or cats, are associated with fewer food allergies in children up to three years old, even when exposed to these animals before birth, according to a study released on Thursday.
The research, carried out in Japan and published in Plos Onedoes not establish a cause and effect relationship, but an association between the two factors.
The scientists used data from the Japanese Childhood and Environment Study, involving 66,215 childrenwhich included information about pet exposure and food allergies, among others.
In some developed countries, more than one in 10 children is diagnosed with a food allergy, and the incidence continues to rise, scientists point out.
The study indicates that about 22% of minors were exposed to pets, mainly dogs and cats indoors during the fetal period.
Among children with indoor contact with dogs and cats, there was a “significant reduction” in the incidence of food allergiesalthough no significant differences were seen with children from homes with outdoor dogs.
The data indicate that children exposed to indoor dogs “were significantly less likely” to suffer specific allergies to eggs, milk and nuts. Those who had contact with cats were “significantly less likely” to have allergies to eggs, wheat and soy.
However, in the case of hamsters (0.9% of the total group studied) there was a significantly lower incidence of allergies to nuts.
The authors point out some limitations of the study, such as the fact that the data are not based on allergy tests or other analyzes carried out by them, but rather on those provided by the participants supplemented with clinical histories.
In addition, this study cannot determine whether the relationship between pet exposure and the incidence of food allergies is one of cause and effect.
Still, the authors suggest that these results may help guide future investigations into the mechanisms underlying childhood food allergies.
ZAP // 
