Dogs May Help To Protect Children From Developing Eczema And Ease Symptoms Of Asthma
As if you needed any excuse to get yourself a four-legged companion, or give the one you currently have a boop on the nose and scratch on the belly for being very good, new research suggests that dogs may help protect children from developing not only eczema but also asthma. Weirdly, this was found to be the case even if a child was known to be allergic to the animals, but only in certain situations. Researchers wanted to see if the presence of a dog in houses had any impact on these childhood conditions. Eczema is often more common in children than in adults, and causes the skin to become dry, red and itchy, while asthma is more commonly found in children living in urban environments. From this, two studies looked at how exposure to dogs at different points of development contributed. Both papers have been presented at the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) Annual Scientific Meeting. “Although eczema is commonly found in infants, many people don't k...