Questions and answers from the Respiratory Educators Web conferance

Did you know that Asthma Educators across Canada are interested in knowing what was learned through the SAGE study?  Last Thursday, RESPTrec^© (managed by the Lung Associations of Manitoba and Saskatchewan) invited Dr. Becker to present at a web seminar for asthma educators across Canada.
Dr. Becker presented some of the SAGE research findings.  Asthma Educators also had many good questions.  Here is a summary of some of their questions and the answers.

FAQ from Resp Trec Web Ex

1 - Are the rates of asthma the same for children who live in the city and children who live in the country?

No, there is a higher incidence of asthma in city vs. country kids.  14% of children who live in the city have asthma, 10% of children who live in the country have asthma.

2 - How do breast feeding and a child’s weight affect the risk of developing asthma?

Breastfeeding for less than 3 months does not increase risk.

Overweight alone does not increase risk.

BUT the combination of little breastfeeding AND overweight increases risk significantly, especially if the mother has asthma

3 - Is there any research on the use of probiotics?

There is some research regarding the use or probiotics being done in Sweden – their findings show that taking probiotics during pregnancy and while breastfeeding may have some effect on the development of eczema but has no effect on the development of asthma.

4 - Prolonged maternal stress was a risk factor for the development of asthma in children. Is there any research indicating the risk if the pregnancy was planned vs. unplanned?

Weather the pregnancy was planned or not was not asked.  What we do know, is that there is an increased incidence of asthma if the mother is young vs. an older mother.

5 - Does it make a difference if the child was born by cesarean section of vaginally?

There is an increase incidence of asthma in children born by cesarean section (25% increase risk).  The reasons for this are not yet clear.

6 - What about the role that Vitamin D can play?

Vitamin D insufficiency may play a role in the development of wheezing in early childhood but we DON’T KNOW if this leads to asthma.

7 - Does the DAD having asthma play a role in the child’s risk of developing asthma?

Parents having asthma is a risk factor that increases the child’s chance of having asthma.  In the preschool years, it seems that Mom’s asthma has a bigger influence on whether or not the young child will develop asthma.

In the school age years, Dad’s asthma plays a bigger role.