Do risk factors for childhood infections and malnutrition protect against asthma? A study of Brazilian male adolescents.
OBJECTIVE
We studied the association between early life conditions and asthma in adolescence.


METHODS
We conducted a population-based birth cohort study involving 2250 male 18-year-olds residing in Brazil.


RESULTS
Approximately 18% of the adolescents reported having asthma. Several childhood factors were found to be significantly associated with increased asthma risk: being of high socioeconomic status, living in an uncrowded household, and children being breastfed for 9 months or longer.


CONCLUSIONS
The present results are consistent with the "hygiene hypothesis," according to which early exposure to infections provides protection against asthma. The policy implications of our findings are unclear given that risk factors for asthma protect against serious childhood diseases in developing countries.
da Costa Lima
Rosângela
R
Post-Graduate Programme in Epidemiology, Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil. roclima@terra.com.br
Victora
Cesar G
CG
Menezes
Ana Maria B
AM
Barros
Fernando C
FC
D000293:Adolescent; D001249:Asthma / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D001942:Breast Feeding / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003441:Crowding; D005191:Family Characteristics; D006801:Humans; D006920:Hygiene; D007239:Infections / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D044342:Malnutrition / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012135:Respiratory Sounds; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D012962:Sociology, Medical