Researchers found that cleaning products and disinfectants can have adverse health effects in the next generation after reviewing the data collected in the large international RHINESSA and RHINE studies.
Children with asthma are more likely to have their mothers worked in a position that exposed them to cleaning products or disinfectants before they were born, according to a study led by UiB researchers.
Disinfectants And Cleaning Products May Cause Asthma In The Kids
We may be more aware of how we use cleaning products and disinfectants in these times of pandemics.
The health of the mother has a direct relation with the health of kids, and it is proven in several studies.
One more such study was conducted by a group where it is seen that those mothers who are exposed to harmful chemicals used in disinfectants and other cleaning items can have children with numerous health hazards.
In the market, disinfectants and other cleaning products are made using several chemicals which can cause allergy and other health issues in one who is exposed to them. This can further affect the future kids if females are exposed to them.
The effects of exposure to potent chemicals on future mothers are studied, but there is little study of their children,” states Professor Cecilie Svanes.
New research, however, suggests that the chemical exposure of parents before conception may affect their children’s future health.
Researchers studied 3318 pairs of offspring and mothers in this paper. Participants in the RHINESSA study were offspring, while RHINE participants were mothers. In addition, the offspring’s parents provided information about all their previous jobs as well as their childhood asthma.
Cleaners, nurses, cooks, and other health care providers are among those who handle cleaning agents and disinfectants. As a result of the analyses, it was discovered to be 72% more likely that the child had asthma and/or wheezing if the mother first worked with such exposures before having the child. As a result, there would have been no increase in asthma risk if she had started these activities after the baby was born.
Consequently, cleaning agents and disinfectants may influence the health of future children by changing the mother. The mechanism by which this may occur is unknown. It is most likely that the mechanism involves influence on the germ cells since most women quit their exposed jobs many years before conceiving.
Professor Svanes says that further research is imperative, given the likely impact of cleaning agents used by women of childbearing age on their children.
A unique feature of this study is that very few studies have investigated parents’ work exposure in relation to their children’s health outcomes. The risks of direct exposure to cleaning agents are very different.
A large body of literature now shows that such compounds, with their irritations and allergens, can adversely affect airways. A previous study, however, did not investigate the effect of years of such exposure on offspring years later.
Dishwashing soap was among the cleaning products commonly used—soaps for laundry, dishwasher detergents, and surface cleaners. The study involved 64 percent of white children, and nearly 75 percent of them had never been exposed to tobacco smoke before age 3 to 5 months. Also, 85 percent of children enrolled in the study were not asthmatic.
Childhood asthma and recurrent episodes of wheezing are more common in children whose parents frequently used household cleaning products. Atopy diagnoses were not directly linked to the use of cleaning products, according to the researchers.
Despite the fact that girls suffer this condition more often than boys, the results were not statistically significant. According to the research team, cleaning products that are scented or sprayed have an adverse effect on respiratory health.