Cleaning products 'wheezing link'
Exposure to cleaning products while in the womb could be linked to persistent wheezing in young children.
25.12.2004 |Sonja Haider
Experts looked at families' use of a range of products such as bleach,
paint stripper and carpet cleaners.
Children born into the 10% of families which used these products the most were twice as likely to suffer from wheezing as those who used the least.
The study of 14,000 children from birth is published in the journal Thorax.
There is gathering evidence that environmental exposures early in
life, including in the womb, may influence the development of asthma Dr
Matt Hallsworth, Asthma UK.
The researchers said, while their
study suggested a link between prenatal exposure and wheezing, exposure
after birth could also be a factor.
Further research is
underway to look for physiological changes in the children's lungs
which would indicate the effect had occurred while they were in the
womb.
Wheezing can be a sign a child will go on to develop asthma.
The study, which is part of the University of Bristol's Children of the
90s research, involved 7,019 families.
Pregnant women were asked how often they used common household cleaning
products.
The
11 most common were disinfectant (used by 87.4%), bleach (84.8%),
carpet cleaner (35.8%), window cleaner (60.5%), dry cleaning fluid
(5.4%), aerosols (71.7%), turpentine/white spirit (22.6%), air
fresheners - spray, stick or aerosol (68%), paint stripper (5.5%) ,
paint or varnish (32.9%) and pesticides/insecticides (21.2%).
The
researchers then calculated the total chemical burden for each family,
depending on how often they used each product - then they compared it
with each mother's report on whether her child had experienced
wheezing.
Cleaners
The children were followed until they were three-and-a-half years old.
It was found 6.2% (432 children) had a persistent wheeze from being a baby.
Just over 70% of the children had never experienced wheezing, 19% wheezed as babies but not when they were older, and 3.5% developed wheezing problems after the age of two-and-a-half.
The more frequently the chemicals were used, the higher the risk that the young child would have persistent wheezing.
The link remained even after other factors, such as parental smoking, damp housing, and family history of asthma were taken into account.
Other studies have shown people working as cleaners are at increased risk of developing asthma, and that toddlers exposed to fumes from solvents and cleaning products at home are also at high risk.
Dr Andrea Sherriff, who led the study, said: "We can't say the products caused the wheezing. We can only say we observed an association."
Indoor air quality
Dr Sherriff said: "Pregnant women should be reassured that this is simply an observational study. It does not offer conclusive proof that this is causing a rise in asthma."But also, it would be sensible to use these things in moderation." She added: "Further research will identify whether this effect persists into later childhood and will attempt to identify the specific components responsible."
Dr Matt Hallsworth, of the charity Asthma UK, said: "There is gathering evidence that environmental exposures early in life, including in the womb, may influence the development of asthma.
"This large study provides some evidence that increasing exposure to household chemicals during pregnancy may be linked to an increased risk of a child wheezing in the first few years of life."
He added: "There has been much debate about whether outdoor air pollution increases the risk of developing asthma.
"This study reminds us that we should also consider the quality of the indoor air we breathe and how it may affect the health of our children's lungs."
Story from BBC NEWS:
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Helen Lynn - Health Co-ordinator
Women's Environmental Network
PO Box 30626, London E1 1TZ UK
t: 00 44 20 7481 9004
f: 00 44 20 7481 9144
e: health@wen.org.uk
W: http://www.wen.org.uk
