Skip to main content
CNN EditionHealth
The Web    CNN.com     
Powered by
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
SERVICES
 
 
 
SEARCH
Web CNN.com
powered by Yahoo!
On The Scene

Dr. Sanjay Gupta: Dogs may protect kids from allergies

CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta
CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta

Story Tools

(CNN) -- In a study presented at the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology conference this week, researchers found that having a dog around during a baby's first year of life is associated with a reduction in allergies.

CNN anchor Bill Hemmer talked with medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta about the findings.

GUPTA: This is a story that hits close to home for a lot of people. About 40 million to 50 million people have allergies to something in this country, and about 43 million people own dogs. Well, it turns out the two are actually related in some way.

There was a study done of 286 children, newborns actually, to find out whether or not exposure to a dog actually protects them against allergies later in life, and, in fact, that's exactly what the study found. Thirty-three percent had allergies later on without the dog as a newborn; that's compared to 19 percent who had allergies if they had a dog -- a pretty significant protective effect by having a dog.

Now, researchers tried to figure out why this might be, and they deduced that perhaps when a newborn is exposed to a dog, it actually revs up some of the good parts of the immune system, those same sorts of cells that might actually help ward off allergies later in life.

That's their theory at least. A little more research needs to be done. And again, this was just that one year of life.

This isn't the first study that actually proved this. There have been other studies in the past that have looked at the protective effect of animals in the household against allergies, but this is a pretty significant one.

Also, it's important to remember that allergies are believed to be inherited. If both of your parents have allergies, there's a 50 percent chance that the offspring will have an allergy, and if one parent has allergies, then a 25 percent chance.

HEMMER: Makes sense. Long hair, short hair -- does it matter on the dog? Some people argue that point.

GUPTA: Yes, this was just dog or no dog, but they did conclude that further studies need to be done to find out if there is a particular type of dog that has the most protective effect.


Story Tools
Subscribe to Time for $1.99 cover
Top Stories
Candy makers target fitness market
Top Stories
CNN/Money: Security alert issued for 40 million credit cards
 
 
 
 

International Edition
CNN TV CNN International Headline News Transcripts Advertise With Us About Us
SEARCH
   The Web    CNN.com     
Powered by
© 2005 Cable News Network LP, LLLP.
A Time Warner Company. All Rights Reserved.
Terms under which this service is provided to you.
Read our privacy guidelines. Contact us.
external link
All external sites will open in a new browser.
CNN.com does not endorse external sites.
 Premium content icon Denotes premium content.
Add RSS headlines.