Can Birth Month Predict Asthma In Newborns?
Posted November 24, 2008 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The value of astrology as a predictor of life’s many turns is already plenty polarizing, but there are those on the scientific side of things who suggest the timing of a child’s birth can ultimately impact the future of its respiratory health.
A new study out of the Center for Asthma Research at Vanderbilt University claims fall babies, ones born roughly four months ahead of cold and flu season, are at the greatest risk of developing childhood asthma, far greater than children born at any other time of the year.
The research reportedly looked at the birth and medical records of more than 95,000 children and their mothers in Tennessee. What emerged was clinical respiratory episodes as a significant predictor of childhood asthma, and the risk was still greatest for those born in autumn.
“Infant age at the winter virus peak following birth independently predicts asthma development, with the highest risk being for infants born approximately four months prior to the peak, which is represented by birth in the fall months in the Northern hemisphere. Birth during this time conferred a nearly 30 percent increase in odds of developing asthma,” said Tina V. Hartert, M.D., M.P.H., principal investigator of the study.
On the matter of why infants develop asthma at all, researchers propose two reasons. First, a genetic susceptibility, and second, winter viral infections.
“The risk of progressing from bronchiolitis to asthma is almost certainly influenced by genetic factors,” wrote Dr. Hartert.
“However, if this association were due only to genetic factors, there would be a seasonal effect on infection but not on asthma. Instead we have shown that there is variation in the risk of developing asthma by the timing of birth in relationship to the winter virus peak for each year studied. This supports a causal relationship of childhood asthma with the winter virus peak after birth.”
Of course when it can fall anywhere inside a 10-week span, predicting the peak of virus season is a challenge at best.
Dr. Hartert suggests there are possible ways to reduce risks associated with birth timing, including avoiding infection through administration of a vaccine or immunoprophylaxis or planning birth for the spring months, they just need to be studied more first.
“The next critical step is support for studies designed to determine whether prevention of the ubiquitous infections during infancy prevents childhood asthma,” she said.
Tips on effectively managing childhood asthma
