
Daycare may offer more than early learning. New data indicates it may provide protection against food and perennial aeroallergen sensitization. The study and its data was presented at the 2024 American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI) Annual Meeting in February.
Researchers collected demographic and clinical measures from consenting mothers and their children in the Puerto Rican Infant Metagenomic and Epidemiologic Study of Respiratory Outcomes (PRIMERO) cohort at Hospital Interamericano de Medicina Avanzada-San Pablo, Puerto Rico.
According to the study’s primary author, Jonathan Witonsky, MD, MAS, assistant professor in the Pediatric Division of Allergy, Immunology, and Bone Marrow Transplant at the University of California, San Francisco, Puerto Rican children display a disproportionate burden of childhood asthma and allergies, compounded by an overrepresentation of the socioeconomic and environmental determinants associated with these conditions.
The study examined blood samples from 2,100 children to look at total IgE levels and allergen sensitization over two years.
Researchers believe the new data is an important step in understanding prevention and potentially lowering the risk of asthma and allergic diseases in children.