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Article: Do pets prevent allergic disease?(POINT/COUNTERPOINT)
- Article from:
- Internal Medicine News
- Article date:
- September 15, 2007
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2007 International Medical News Group. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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The weight of the evidence favors a preventive role.
Although there are some inconsistencies in the evidence, most of it supports the hypothesis that having pets in the home prevents the development of allergic disease.
Some caveats: First, not all pets are created equal. The evidence is strongest for furred pets, as most studies have been done with regard to dogs and cats.
Second, allergic disease represents a range of conditions. In some of the studies, the outcome is asthma; in others, the outcome is allergic sensitization; and some studies focus on symptoms. Sensitization is obviously not itself a disease, but it's a useful indicator of the ...