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Parental problems can exacerbate asthma symptoms in children
Last reviewed: 01.07.2025
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A new study, to be presented at the annual International Congress of the European Respiratory Society in Vienna, suggests that an unhealthy family environment increases the risk of developing or worsening asthma in a child.
During the research, specialists from the Netherlands studied the relationship between respiratory diseases and the emotional environment within the family.
As part of the same project, scientists found that if all doctor’s recommendations are followed properly, children experience a significant improvement in their condition, including complete recovery.
Despite the fact that the children participating in the experiment underwent complex treatment for this disease, the results were different for everyone.
Depending on the frequency and severity of symptoms, some patients experienced immediate improvements, while others never made any progress.
After analyzing the results, the specialists conducted detailed interviews with the children's parents. They then compared the chest X-ray results of the little patients with the data from the interviews with their moms and dads.
Although all parents of children with low rates of changes in the course of the disease were ready to zealously adhere to all the doctor's instructions, they were unable to do so. The parents cited a number of difficult life circumstances as the reasons for such an irresponsible approach to the health of their own child, as well as the child's own unwillingness to approach treatment seriously.
These factors that led to zero treatment results were financial problems, total employment and chaotic family life of spouses. In addition, there were cases when mothers and fathers did not control the process of taking medications by 8-12-year-old children.
"It is important that physicians treating children with asthma take these potential barriers to normal treatment into account."
David Supple, the father of a child with asthma, says that four children in the house is quite a big emotional and physical burden for parents: “When we gave Alex the responsibility for taking medication, we simply took another responsibility off our shoulders, but we didn’t think about our responsibility. We realized this now, seeing that the treatment process was not bringing any results for our son.”
David and his wife encourage other parents of sick children to carefully follow all recommendations and advice from doctors and in no case let this process take its own course.