The use of household cleaners can cause respiratory problems, including asthma in children. Research published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal found that frequent exposure to household cleaning products in early life was associated with an increased risk of developing asthma and wheezing by age 3. The research further sheds light on common household factors that may lead to the development of allergic airway diseases. This tells us about the potential areas of intervention for the prevention and development of asthma. [1]
The use of household cleaners increases the risk of asthma & wheezing in children. Photo Credit: Shutterstock
The findings are based on the Canadian Healthy Infant Longitudinal Development Cohort Study. Parental questionnaires were evaluated to pinpoint the use of 26 cleaning products in the participant families from 2008 to 2015. The data thus collected covered 2022 children from the age of 3-4 months old. It was categorized as frequent or less frequent. It was then associated with asthma, recurrent wheeze, and atopy.
The data revealed that while exposure to household cleaners increased the likelihood of children developing asthma and recurrent wheeze, its association with atopy was not found. Of the cleaning products, scented and sprayed products were found to be riskier than others when it came to respiratory issues.
