Babies also affected by pollen exposure

The harmful effects of pollen in babies could be important for the development of asthma in childhood Keystone / Valda Kalnina

Pollen from grasses and trees can cause symptoms such as coughing or wheezing in babies as early as the first year of life, Basel researchers have shown for the first time. This connection was previously only known in older children and adults.

This finding is important because infancy is a particularly sensitive time for lung development, the University Children’s Hospital Basel said in a statementExternal link on Monday. The harmful effects of pollen in babies could be important for the development of asthma in childhood.

The studyExternal link, published in the scientific journal Allergy, has been awarded the Pfizer Research Prize, the hospital wrote.

The Basel research team, led by Amanda Gisler, followed more than 400 babies throughout their first year of life. During the analysis period (January to September), they recorded the children’s symptoms weekly in telephone interviews.

Pollen exposure for the corresponding week was estimated for each infant using data from the nearest monitoring station. Statistical models were used to investigate whether there was a significant association between individual pollen exposure and respiratory symptoms. Children who were exposed to higher levels of grass and tree pollen were found to have more respiratory symptoms.

The research team also found that the effect of the pollen did not depend on the mother’s predisposition to allergic reactions or the sex of the infant. They also investigated whether the effect of pollen increases with increased air pollution. However, the study could not find a clear effect in this regard.

For her research work in paediatrics, Gisler received the Pfizer Research PrizeExternal link on January 26. The Pfizer Research Prize is one of the most important research prizes for medicine in Switzerland. It is awarded annually to outstanding young scientists who have made distinguished and pioneering contributions to laboratory or clinical research at Swiss research institutes or hospitals.