Childhood Asthma News and Research

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Maternal smoking during pregnancy contributes to asthma severity and poor lung function in kids

A new study published in the journal CHEST highlights the burden of obstructive lung disease in US children and implicates tobacco smoke exposure through maternal smoking during pregnancy as more strongly associated with worse lung function than current, ongoing TSE in school-aged children with asthma.

5 Mar 2018

Asthmatics have lower degree of DNA methylation in certain immune cells

Children with asthma have epigenetic DNA changes in certain cells of their immune system, a major international study involving researchers at Karolinska Institutet shows. The finding, which is presented in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, can one day lead to improved diagnostics and treatment.

23 Feb 2018

Early childhood immune signature predicts risk of developing asthma later on

Asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease driven by the interplay of genetics, environmental factors and a diverse cast of immune cells.

19 Feb 2018

Cleaner shipping fuels will result in reduction of childhood asthma, study finds

Marine shipping fuels will get a whole lot cleaner in 2020 when a regulation by the International Maritime Organization requires fuels to contain 80-86 percent less sulfur.

7 Feb 2018

Childhood asthma linked to high maternal sugar intake during pregnancy

New research published today in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society reports that children born to mothers who drank a lot of sugary drinks during pregnancy may be at an increased risk of developing asthma during childhood.

8 Dec 2017

Prenatal and early-life consumption of sugary drinks may increase risk of mid-childhood asthma

Children between the ages of 7 and 9 may be at greater risk for developing asthma if they consumed high amounts of fructose in early childhood or their mothers drank a lot of sugar-sweetened beverages while pregnant, according to new research published online in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society.

8 Dec 2017

Attack on asthma: Scrubbing homes of allergens may tame disease and its costs

After years of studying the causes of asthma, a pediatrician-turned-public health sleuth thinks there's a way to substantially reduce its impact.

6 Dec 2017

Study provides potential explanation for increased prevalence of asthma in adult women

In childhood, asthma is more common in boys than girls. But around the time of puberty, that picture reverses. By midlife women are twice as likely as men to have asthma.

29 Nov 2017

Family risk for childhood asthma may involve microbes found in baby's digestive tract

A new University of Alberta study shows that the family risk for asthma--typically passed from moms to babies--may not be a result of genetics alone: it may also involve the microbes found in a baby's digestive tract.

28 Nov 2017

Study finds no association between BCG vaccine and childhood asthma

Childhood asthma is a serious public health challenge in Québec and throughout the world. Although the immune mechanisms implicated in the development of childhood asthma are not fully understood, some studies seem to suggest that the BCG vaccine, used in tuberculosis prevention, may have a protective effect on childhood asthma.

3 Oct 2017

Children with respiratory tract infections have increased risk for asthma, worse lung function in later life

Respiratory tract infections in young children are linked to an increased risk of asthma and worse lung function in later life, according to new research to be presented at the European Respiratory Society International Congress today (Sunday).

11 Sep 2017

Racial disparities in childhood asthma linked to residential segregation

Researchers have had trouble explaining why black children are much more likely than other children to suffer from asthma.

7 Aug 2017

Maternal sugar intake during pregnancy may increase allergy risk in offspring

Findings from the 'Children of the 90s' released this week suggest that a high maternal sugar intake during pregnancy may increase the risk of the child developing allergies. There was a strong positive association between intake of free sugars during pregnancy and the development of allergy and allergic asthma in offspring.

7 Jul 2017

Phthalate exposure linked to depressed thyroid function in young girls

Early childhood exposures to specific phthalates were associated with depressed thyroid function in girls at age 3, according to scientists at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health. Phthalates, a class of chemicals thought to disrupt the endocrine system, are widely used in consumer products from plastic toys to household building materials to shampoos.

30 May 2017

Vitamin D supplements in pregnancy could help protect children against asthma

A new study published today in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology has found that taking Vitamin D supplements in pregnancy can positively modify the immune system of the newborn baby, which could help to protect against asthma and respiratory infections, a known risk factor for developing asthma in childhood.

26 May 2017