Association of environment and place of birth with asthma in Chinese immigrant children

Abstract

Little is known about why some children develop asthma and others do not. We have previously reported strong associations between being born in the US and prevalence of asthma. Our findings led us to consider the hygiene hypothesis as a possible explanation. Here we report results from a survey of 212 Chinese children attending two clinics in Boston. We sought information on prior unsanitary living conditions, diagnosed asthma, socioeconomic status and other relevant variables. Few children were reported to have lived in unsanitary conditions, which is inconsistent with the hygiene hypothesis. However, we did replicate an earlier finding that SES was an effect modifier for the association between asthma and place of birth.

Keywords

• Asthma
• Sanitation
• Hygiene hypothesis
• Children
• Immigrant
• Chinese