Researchers found that children whose mothers dated a dog during pregnancy and up to a year after giving birth had a significantly lower risk of developing eczema at age two .
Dogs are good for morale but also for human health. They prevent several infections, as demonstrated several studies. New research published in October in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology and relayed by Doctissimo shows that the presence of this animal during the pregnancy and the child’s first year of life has “a protective effect significant on the early development of eczema at the age of 2 years”.
The scientists behind the study selected 789 children under the age of two who lived with a dog. They followed them until they are ten years oldand divided the subjects according to the appearance ofeczema. Four groups were formed: those who did not have the disease, those who had eczema at age two but healed at age 10, those who had it at age two and persisted and finally, the children who have developed it from the age of 10. At the same time, the authors notably asked the participants through a questionnaire, if the dog lived most often inside the home, during pregnancy and the child’s first year of life. This was the case for 26% of the volunteers.
The influence of the dog on the human microbiota
Result: the children whose mothers had the company of a dog during their pregnancy and during their first year of the baby had significantly lower risk to develop eczema at the age of two. “Clinically, our results suggest that prenatal dog exposure may protect against early eczema“, observe the authors. For them, this could be explained by the fact that animals can influence the microbiota babies. Exposure to certain bacteria seems boost the immune system and make children more resistant to this type of disease.
As Dr. Amy Eapen, who participated in the study, points out, “the results suggest that the first year of life is potentially the critical window for preventing eczema”.
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