Off the top of your head you can probably think of plenty of ways that growing up on a farm might be beneficial to children. The access to cleaner air, more exercise and plenty of fresh vegetables are obvious advantages to a farm-based upbringing. But now it seems there might be another reason why spending your childhood on farm land could be good for you.
An international team of researchers has discovered that exposure to a greater variety of microorganisms, like those found on a farm, can help prevent children from developing forms of asthma.
Asthma is by far the most common chronic disease that affects children, and is also the leading cause of missed school days. The disease is caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors, so not all preventative measures will always work. It causes inflammation of the airways which results in wheezing and shortness of breath.
Researchers from University Children’s Hospital Munich conducted a number of studies comparing children living on farms to children living in rural areas away from farmland. They also took data from nearly a thousand children’s bedroom to analyse the bacterial and fungal DNA.
The results were clear. Children who lived on farms were about 30 to 50 percent less likely to develop asthma than those who live on farms. The farm children were also exposed to much higher levels of bacteria which seemed to act as a protective shield against triggers for the condition.
It seems that a certain number of bacteria introduced in early childhood can help you avoid asthma and allergies by allowing the immune system to develop correctly. The research team hopes that further research might be able to identify specific bacteria that could serve as a vaccine against asthma.
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