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Here’s an even better reason to expose your children to pets at an early age: adults never exposed to them have a higher chance of developing allergies if they get pets. A team from the University Hospital of Verona (in Italy) studied more than 6,000 adults twice in nine years. It found that people who had never lived with cats before, and then adopted them in adulthood, doubled their chances of becoming allergic to the cat. The chances were even higher if the adults had other allergies or asthma.
The process of becoming allergic to something when previously you weren’t is called sensitization. Five percent of the people involved in the study who got a cat at one point during the nine years of the study then became sensitized to it. More interesting is the fact that three percent of the people who didn’t get cats at any point, and who weren’t allergic to cats before, became sensitized if they were around cats. Four in 10 of the people who became sensitized during the course of the study said they experienced allergy symptoms around animals.
If you’ve never had a cat, but you’ve also never noticed that you were allergic (if you’ve spent time at homes with cats), that doesn’t necessarily mean you won’t become allergic if you get one. If you really want a cat, don’t despair. There are a few things you can do.
Try going to an allergist to take a test: they can tell you whether or not you’re more likely to become sensitized. Even if your chances are high, if you’re still desperate for a kitty there are other things you can do. Consider keeping the cat outside, or even just having it as indoor/outdoor. Brush it outside, or take it to a professional groomer.
If your cat is allowed inside, or is an inside cat, keep it out of your bedroom. That could help prevent you from becoming allergic, or at least reduce the amount your senses are irritated by the cat dander. Purchase HEPA filters. Brush it daily and give the cat a bath at least once a week. Apply dander control products to your cat’s fur. Look into immunotherapy or getting allergy shots.
Allergists interviewed by Reuters for their article on the topic said that this study indicates that early childhood desensitization for cats lasts all the way until adulthood. Before, there were no studies proving that the immunity against cats that can be developed from infancy stays in the body one’s whole life.
Dander is a huge irritant. It makes sense that constant exposure to it would cause someone to develop allergies, if before they only had incidental exposure. The main thing that I take away from this article, though, is how useful it might be for children to be exposed to pets early in their lives. That way, they don’t have to worry as much about developing problems at any point in the future.
Related Articles:
Understanding the Relationship between Pets and Allergies
Living with Dogs Might Improve Baby Health
Spring Proofing Your Pet: Allergies
Treating Your Pup’s Mosquito Bites
*(This image by jetalone is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 License.)
