Talking Allergies

Have anyone heard of the study that says having pets in the house can reduce the chance of developing asthma in children? What is the theroy behind that?

I had a cat in the house when I was 6 years old for a short while(less than a year). Then I have live with different cats over the years here and there. Never had problems. Until I got my own cat about 5 years ago and I developed adult onset asthma. My worry is that since my dd has PA, will her chance of getting asthma be greater despite having a cat at home? Will having PA actually increase her chance of getting asthma no matter what? Should I give up my cat just in case?

Both my children have severe allergies, but no asthma so far. we had a dog until my oldest daughter (almost 5) was one. We got rid of the dog because we suspected she was allergic (turns out she is not). My almost 3 year old now IS allergic to cats and dogs and I am really happy we got rid of the dog when we did. It would have been traumatic to my oldest daughter to loose her dog because of her sisters allergy, she already lost milk/eggs/and chicken due to her sisters allergies and loosing the dog too would have probably made her resent her sister.

Did you allergy test for cats too, when you tested for peanut?

If their is family history of allergies and cat allergy, and you plan on further children getting rid of the cat before your oldest child is really attatched might help prevent some sibling resentment down the road. It depends on how much you really love your cat. Some people love their pets, and a friend of mine has a cat which she can not stand.

In my opinion, people with any kind of allergies, espeically environmental ones should not have pets. My daughter tested positive for cat allergies. We dont' have a cat but her daycare provider that she had from age 4-7 had one. They said that the exposure is what probably caused the allergy. She's not allergic to dogs.

When I was a child, I had a dog as a pet and eventually grew allergic to dogs. In my early 20's, I got a rabbit since I had no reaction to them. Within a year, I became so allergic to the bunny that as soon as I walked into the room where he was I started into non-stop sneezing.

My daughter has a goldfish as a pet....she's happy with that.

We only discovered dd's PA allergy last week. An allergist appointment is booked for March. Will have tests done then to find out if she's allergic to anything else.

I have never done any allergy test. But I am sure of my allergy to cat because my asthma started shortly after I got my cat. My doctor suggested me to give up my cat, but I am a cat lover, in fact, I treat my cat like my daughter. It would be really hard to give her up.... (mostly because dh and I got her as a giveaway kitten, I feel terribly awful now that I might have to give her away) But if it's gonna affect dd, I guess human vs animal, I have no choice but to choose my dd.

Just weighing in my 2 cents worth...

I was raised with a cat, then a dog. Constant runny nose. (And undiagnosed food allergies!) In college, I had a cat, then added another until my household included 6 cats, a dog, and a duck. (Cheap Vet bills from working at a Vet School.)

After we moved to our current location, I was finally diagnosed with multiple food allergies (GI reactions) and environmental allergies to cat, dust mite, oak and plantain weed. I would not give up my cats, so the Allergist suggested keeping them out of the bedroom. Worked great...got allergy shots, also. Environmental allergies are much better.

I have never had asthma. But my cousin's husband and college-aged daughter developed adult-onset asthma, just recently. Their Doc says its from working in the city. (We live near a major allergy capital.)

I also use a medical-grade air cleaner in our bedroom with a HEPA filter. And of course the pillow and mattress encasings. Also, switching the house over to tile and hardwood flooring. (Carpeting is really filthy!) Down to 2 cats, a dog and a tortoise.

Hope this helps,
Daisy

I've heard of that study. I don't know though if it would hold true for someone who already has food allergies. I'd ask your doctor before giving up the cat.

Yes, PA increases the chance of having asthma. I overheard a doctor say that one can expect PA patients to get asthma.

Related to pets- has anyone with cats reacted to cedar-based cat litter?

My face is splotchy and I think I've isolated this reaction to be due to someone's litter filled feet being on my pillow. I'm allergic to tree pollen (cedar) so I think it might be a no-brainer!

Allergic Living wrote a big feature about the various studies on pets and what the experts have to say: it's in the Fall 2006 issue, and you can still order that back issue online (hit the subscribe/renew tab on the home page, follow back issue steps).

The theory is to do with allergy prevention and relates to the hygiene hypothesis, and that exposing young children to animals may have a protective effect against the development of asthma and environmental allergies. Think all the studies said, though, that if an allergy to the pet does develop, pet would still need to go.

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Allergic to soy, peanut, shellfish, penicillin