Asthma and farming?
An alert reader sent me this story (I always wanted to say that, I sound just like Dave Barry! Only he's a funny accomplished writer, and I just share asthma stories.. )
There's a new article on WebMD about asthma and farms. It seems that kids who grow up on farms were 30%-50% less likely to have asthma than kids not raised on farms.
The study shows that people who are exposed to to dirt, fungi and animals early in life are supposed to be protected against allergies and asthma. Well, it didn't work for me!
I didn't grow up on a farm, but I had an assortment of animals in the suburban house where I was raised. They include guinea pigs, a pet rat (really!), a couple of ducks, a few frogs, a parakeet, 2 rabbits (separate cages of course!), 4 or 5 cats and a couple of dogs.
Of course I didn't have these all at the same time! But we always had some animals, and I remember constantly sneezing when I was growing up.
As usual, I am the exception to the rule. I had plenty of animals, yet still have allergies and asthma.
If you want to check out the story, the story is called "Bacteria on Farms May Protect Against Asthma" here's the link http://www.webmd.com/asthma/news/20110223/bacteria-on-farms-may-protect-against-asthma
It's worth reading, I am anxious for the day when they can find a cure for asthma, until then I guess we can envy all the farm kids.