Article: Cats, dogs may lower allergy risk

Growing up with cats and dogs may reduce a child's risk of developing allergies, according to a new study.

Sydney researchers who followed more than 500 children born to families with no pet cats found those who acquired a cat in their first five years of life were less likely to test positive in allergy skin- prick tests.

The Childhood Asthma Prevention Study found the reduced risk did not depend on the child's age when a cat was acquired, nor whether the cat was kept indoors or outdoors. A reduced response to allergy tests was also found in children who grew up with dogs. The research findings, presented this week at the annual scientific meeting of the Thoracic Society of Australia and ...

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