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Owning a dog may prevent childhood allergies

Categories: Babies, Health & safety, In the news

When it comes to avoiding allergies, my kids weren't dealt a good genetic hand. I have asthma, and my husband has fairly severe seasonal and year-round allergies. Needless to say, we're hyper alert when watching for signs that they're developing allergies. So far so good.

According to MSNBC, maybe we should thank our dog. A recent study of 9,000 children found that having a dog in the home during infancy reduces the risk of developing allergies, asthma, and eczema. Though no one is exactly sure why, experts theorize that when kids are exposed early on to germs that the dog carries in the house on their fur and paws, their immune systems become less sensitive to things like pollen and other inhaled allergens.

Though previous studies have also found that having pets in the home can have a protective benefit, this study is considered more reliable because of the way it was structured.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to give my dog a milk bone for all of her "hard work."

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