Childhood allergy levels in Chinese cities

Monday, 04 July 2011 10:08

A cross-sectional survey in eight metropolitan cities in China obtained data for almost 24,000 children aged 6-13 years with regard to their allergy status. Results showed that socio–environmental factors had strong impacts on the prevalence of childhood allergies, however, the impacts differed across regions.

The average prevalence of childhood asthma, allergic rhinitis and eczema across the eight cities was 33%, 98% and 55% respectively. Factors related to lifestyle, mental health and socio-economic status were found to be associated with the prevalence of childhood allergies. These risk factors were unevenly distributed across cities and disproportionately affected the local prevalence.

Reference: Li et al. BMC Public Health. Vol.11 pp. 437. DOI:10.1186/1471-2458-11-437