People with pet allergies despite growing up with pets?

[mikeymikec]

I've heard that if a kid has a pet around from day one that they're extremely unlikely to develop pet allergies. I wondered if anyone on this forum has any experiences along these lines.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

I know people with food allergies who loved the food before they developed it and it's pretty common knowledge that long-term exposure is a risk factor for latex allergies. Don't know about pets though. Maybe kids that had a pet around them from day one clearly didn't have allergies from day one so they didn't develop them?

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

This study (http://www.jacionline.org/article/S0091-6749(14)00593-4/abstract) seems to support it.

Pretty interesting although it is one study.

Below is from(same study just different source): http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/news..._germs_may_have_lower_allergy_and_asthma_risk
Previous research has shown that children who grow up on farms have lower allergy and asthma rates, a phenomenon attributed to their regular exposure to microorganisms present in farm soil. Other studies, however, have found increased asthma risk among inner-city dwellers exposed to high levels of roach and mouse allergens and pollutants. The new study confirms that children who live in such homes do have higher overall allergy and asthma rates but adds a surprising twist: Those who encounter such substances before their first birthdays seem to benefit rather than suffer from them. Importantly, the protective effects of both allergen and bacterial exposure were not seen if a child’s first encounter with these substances occurred after age 1, the research found.

A report on the study, published on June 6 in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, reveals that early exposure to bacteria and certain allergens may have a protective effect by shaping children’s immune responses — a finding that researchers say may help inform preventive strategies for allergies and wheezing, both precursors to asthma.

“Our study shows that the timing of initial exposure may be critical,” says study author Robert Wood, M.D., chief of the Division of Allergy and Immunology at the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center. “What this tells us is that not only are many of our immune responses shaped in the first year of life, but also that certain bacteria and allergens play an important role in stimulating and training the immune system to behave a certain way.”

Infants who grew up in homes with mouse and cat dander and cockroach droppings in the first year of life had lower rates of wheezing at age 3, compared with children not exposed to these allergens soon after birth. The protective effect, moreover, was additive, the researchers found, with infants exposed to all three allergens having lower risk than those exposed to one, two or none of the allergens. Specifically, wheezing was three times as common among children who grew up without exposure to such allergens (51 percent), compared with children who spent their first year of life in houses where all three allergens were present (17 percent).

In addition, infants in homes with a greater variety of bacteria were less likely to develop environmental allergies and wheezing at age 3.

When researchers studied the effects of cumulative exposure to both bacteria and mouse, cockroach and cat allergens, they noticed another striking difference. Children free of wheezing and allergies at age 3 had grown up with the highest levels of household allergens and were the most likely to live in houses with the richest array of bacterial species. Some 41 percent of allergy-free and wheeze-free children had grown up in such allergen and bacteria-rich homes. By contrast, only 8 percent of children who suffered from both allergy and wheezing had been exposed to these substances in their first year of life.

Asthma is one of the most common pediatric illnesses, affecting some 7 million children in the United States, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. By the time they turn 3, up to half of all children develop wheezing, which in many cases evolves into full-blown asthma.

 

[Scarpozzi]

We had a dog from the time I was born until I moved out and went to college. I got a dog at the age of 24/25 and I was allergic to him. I think it depends totally on the breed of dog and whether or not you're allergic to stuff in general.

I don't doubt that being around allergens can help build your immunity to them, but in some cases it won't matter.

 

[purbeast0]

i grew up with both cats and dogs and cat hair has always made my eyes itch if i touch my eyes after holding a cat. sometimes i'll also start sneezing.

the dogs i grew up with, after i was about 7 or 8, did not shed.

but to this day, when i go to my moms, sometimes i'll have itchy eyes and/or start sneezing.

 

[glenn1]

Grew up with cats and have gotten increasingly allergic to them as I grew older. They didn't affect me in the slightest when I was young, then became mildly irritating after not having any for a while in my early 20s. Now in my 40s being exposed to one for more than a short period can make me pretty sick, as in near pneumonia level sick. Had to rehome our cats a few years ago after nearly being put in the hospital when coming back from a 3-week vacation (and no cats) to our house with 2 felines.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

Lived with cats and dogs until I was mid 30's. After a few years without any cats or dogs around found out I'm all kinds of allergic. Go figure.

 

[Tinkeric]

The holy grail is a cat that naturally doesn't produce any dander. They exist.

 

[OutHouse]

I've heard that if a kid has a pet around from day one that they're extremely unlikely to develop pet allergies. I wondered if anyone on this forum has any experiences along these lines.

yea thats false.

i grew up with horses and still allergic to them.

 

[highland145]

Grew up with dogs. No problems. Came back from college, allergic to the same dog.

Was not allergic to the Brittany we had for about a year.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Grew up with a dog. Was mildly allergic to cats.

Found a kitten under a dumpster, took pity on it "temporarily." W/in six months (is it ever temporary?) my allergies had disappeared. She's 6 now.

Other cats don't bug me anymore either.

My assumption is that my allergies were never that bad in the first place and I got desensitized.

 

[Denly]

Got a couple cats when I was age 18, developed allergies and was very bad when I was mid 20s. Allergies got milder every year after age 30 and almost all gone now at age 40. Still have cats.

 

[glenn1]

Grew up with dogs. No problems. Came back from college, allergic to the same dog.

Was not allergic to the Brittany we had for about a year.

I think in a lot of cases like this people actually were allergic when you were younger but just didn't realize it because you thought how you felt was "normal." It's only after you're not exposed for a while and can't adapt quite as quickly when the allergen is reintroduced quickly.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Many allergies are developed as opposed to something people are born with. The real question is why so many are developing allergies. Allergies of all kinds have increased by ~10% in one generation.

 

[highland145]

I think in a lot of cases like this people actually were allergic when you were younger but just didn't realize it because you thought how you felt was "normal." It's only after you're not exposed for a while and can't adapt quite as quickly when the allergen is reintroduced quickly.

Probably but no symptoms to speak of. After college, I'd leave my bedroom in the AM and be sneezing by the time I got to the kitchen.

 

[Leyawiin]

Practically every adult I've met who've said "I'm allergic to cats" just doesn't like cats. Also, an irritant isn't necessarily an allergy.

 

[thestrangebrew1]

My wife had a cat when we first dated. Don't remember the breed but as we got serious and moved in together, I got used to the cat and didn't experience allergic symptoms after about a month of living together. BUT, my sister in law got a cat last year and every time within about 10 mins of being in her house I would sneeze horribly and get really irritated eyes. I can't stay in that house for more than about 10 mins to this day. Growing up, I never had pets.