Asthma Research Reveals Baby’s Immunity Affected by Mom’s Stress

Pregnant mothers who are subjected to stressors increase their babies’ risk of developing asthma and various allergic reactions.

Harvard Medical School researchers, while studying the correlation of maternal stress to asthma risks on children in a given population group, came up with the finding.

Immunologic response, as revealed by measuring the levels of antibodies in the blood, reveal that mothers exposed to high-level stress during the gestation period gave birth to babies with higher susceptibility to allergic reactions.

The correlation, even in cases with comparatively lower contact to substances which trigger allergic reactions and asthma of the mother during pregnancy, was still present.

A child’s natural resistance is shaped by the pregnant mother’s exposure to stressors, an information presented in Toronto in 2008 during the American Thoracic Society's International Conference.

Rosalind J. Wright, MD, MPH states that, however, it is too early to conclude that maternal stress contributes to ulterior asthma risks, since the studied children are still too young anyway to show signs of asthma.

Some of those that were included in the study are still in utero, whereas the eldest participants are only 4 years old.

Wright also states that further developments to the study will occur only when the children reach around 3 to 5 years of age.

Economic Conditions Linked to Asthma Around 1 in 10 children in the U.S. is asthmatic. The rates for Afro-American and Hispanic children, as reported, are even greater.

Between kids living in higher economic status and kids in lower economic status, the latter’s rate for developing asthma is nearly twice as high. One of the considered risk factor for asthma is poverty.

For this reason, Wright’s team came up with the Asthma Coalition on Community, Environment and Social Stress (ACCESS), aiming to probe the relationship between asthma and a targeted population group.

Wright adds that some environmental substances, like dust and dust-house mites, act as allergens that can increase the child’s risk for developing asthma. However, this is not purely genetic, and the effects may even begin prior to birth.

Data was amassed from closely-monitored pregnant participants, giving birth to a total of 387 infants.

Surveys revealed the amount of stressors experienced by the mothers during gestation, while ocular inspection of the surroundings measured their exposure to allergens.

Immunoglobulin E (IgE), a natural antibody, was measured. Blood samples were taken in the umbilical cord at birth.

Ige Levels Increased with Stress Despite exposure to low levels of allergens, like house-dust mites, research revealed that IgE levels in the blood of infants is significantly increased; those infants whose mothers were exposed to high-level stress during their gestational period.

Stressors were brought about mostly by economic factors such as finances and the community in general.

Jeanette Peters, PhD states that IgE levels revealed an alteration in the affected child’s defense system. Pregnant women who lived through at least three stressful instances had a 12% more risk of having their children affected.

Pregnant mothers who had the most stress experienced and exposure to house-dust mites, gave birth to babies with the highest IgE measurement in their blood levels.

To improve findings on the correlation of asthma to maternal stress and environmental agents such as house-dust mites, the children will be studied until they reach 5 to 6 years of age.

There is already, however, an imperative public health message awareness brought about by the research, even this early a time.

Peters says that the factors contributing to the child’s predisposition to asthma--both the high-level stress and exposure to environmental allergens such as house-dust mites--could still have a significant effect on the immune system, even when the latter is greatly reduced.

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