Cleanliness is the enemy of the children's immune system
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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It is known that children from large cities suffer much more from allergies than children from rural areas. Scientists of the University of Chicago Ruhi Gupta have created a map of the prevalence of childhood food allergies in the United States. The study analyzed data on more than 40,000 children and adolescents.
It became known that the highest percentage of children with peanut allergy live in large cities. And the allergy to seafood in the city suffered 2.4 children, whereas in rural areas only 0.8% of children.
In rural areas, 6.2 per cent of allergic children live, and in urban 9.8 per cent. And almost in half of cases the allergy is accompanied by dangerous complications which can threaten a life of the child.
Scientists have put forward their own theories about such a "geography of allergy". It is believed that the fine dust on the streets of the cities depresses the immune system. However, how to explain the fact that children from wealthy families are more likely to be allergic than children from poor families? Probably because the children's immune system undergoes a natural "hardening" when faced with new microbes and bacteria that are contained in the mud. Children from clean, sterile rooms do not have the opportunity to develop their immune system, while children from rural areas develop it, and become immune to allergens.
"The discovery showed that the development of food allergies is greatly influenced by the environment. The same can be said about the geography of asthma. However, understanding the factors of the urban and rural environment will help scientists develop methods of preventing the disease, "explains Dr. Rachi Gupta.
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