Exposure to pollen, even as early as the first year of life, is linked with an increased risk for respiratory symptoms, independent of maternal atopy and infant’s sex, according to a study published in Allergy. Amanda Gisler, PhD-candidate, and colleagues examined 14,874 observations from 401 healthy neonates in a prospective birth cohort. The link between pollen exposure and respiratory symptoms, evaluated in weekly telephone interviews, was assessed using generalized additive mixed models. Per infant, 37 ± 2 (mean ± SD) respiratory symptom scores were gauged during the study period. Pollen exposure was correlated with increased respiratory symptoms during both day- and nighttime. The study team also observed a complex crossover relationship between combined pollen and PM2.5, although there was no effect change by maternal atopy and neonate’s sex. “Because infancy is a particularly vulnerable period for lung development, the identified adverse effect of pollen exposure may be relevant for the evolvement of chronic childhood asthma,” the study authors wrote.
