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Medicine Science

Dirty Farm Air May Ward Off Asthma In Children 112

sciencehabit writes: For researchers trying to untangle the roots of the current epidemic of asthma, one observation is especially intriguing: Children who grow up on dairy farms are much less likely than the average child to develop the respiratory disease. Now, a European team studying mice has homed in on a possible explanation: Bits of bacteria found in farm dust trigger an inflammatory response in the animals' lungs that later protects them from asthma. An enzyme involved in this defense is sometimes disabled in people with asthma, suggesting that treatments inspired by this molecule could ward off the condition in people.
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Dirty Farm Air May Ward Off Asthma In Children

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  • Gonna breathe some of that dairy air!

    • by Z00L00K ( 682162 ) on Saturday September 05, 2015 @01:04AM (#50461227) Homepage Journal

      I wouldn't call the farm air dirty, it's still cleaner than the city air we have.

      The difference is that air on farms have a wider variety of bacteria (most of them harmless to humans with a working immune system), and asthma is an auto-immune disease caused by the immune system not being busy enough working on real threats and instead starts to react on all kinds of things that it shouldn't.

      • Re:Goin' to the farm (Score:4, Interesting)

        by Teun ( 17872 ) on Saturday September 05, 2015 @04:14AM (#50461501)
        Having grown up on a farm I can vouch that farm air isn't dirty but at times it might appear to be rich to those not used to nature.
        Statistically there is an interesting correlation between the incidence of asthma and those not having been exposed to nature, this study re-enforced this relation.
        Similar relations exist between kids playing in the dirt (sand/soil) and those with less allergies.

        It's about time to further investigate such.
        • Having grown up on a farm I can vouch that farm air isn't dirty but at times it might appear to be rich to those not used to nature.

          Well, define 'farm'? Is it the one from the painting? Or some more modern ag operation with a bunch of pesticides and sloppily-burned diesel, and big tires kicking the dirt up into the air? Burning the waste every year? Sometimes the air is pretty nice, sometimes it is beyond horrendous.

          • by Anonymous Coward

            This is stupid.

            Ever been on a farm? The "bunch of pesticides" you mention are metered out by the DROP these days, and having made contact with (and killed) whatever pest they're designed to kill, they become inert. The stuff is incredibly expensive, and is used in the minimum possible quantities to get the job done. Without it, crops are subject to being completely killed off by weeds or insects. This tends to negatively affect the price of your soy latte.

            "Sloppily-burned diesel"? Here's a little fact for y

            • The "bunch of pesticides" you mention are metered out by the DROP these days,

              Yes, into a tank. Then they are sprayed into the air.

              It's true that the government has mandated a bunch of "clean air" regulations for new diesel engines, which causes them to use much more fuel than before (the typical 300hp tractor would produce something closer to 450hp without all of the clean-air "aids"),

              Who told you that? They lied to you. Emissions controls don't reduce output any more. They just cost money.

              And what "burning waste" are you actually talking about? In the entire process of planting, cultivating, spraying, and harvesting, I can't think of a single article of waste being burned.

              That's because you know fuck-all, and you haven't had to drive through the rice fields on the 20 while they're burning.

              I realize it feels great to go on a tirade about something you've read about in a Greenpeace newsletter, but if you're going to do it, it's helpful to know what the fuck you're talking about.

              I live in ag country, and you are a lying piece of shit.

        • by dawich ( 945673 )
          Dirty, no. Rich, I like that. Redolent, even. Grew up next to pig farm. Have asthma, anyway. Never want to live near pigs again.
  • by RogueWarrior65 ( 678876 ) on Friday September 04, 2015 @09:19PM (#50460761)

    When you consider that the small pox vaccine originated from cow pox and current society's obsession with anti-bacterial everything.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Anonymous Coward
      I let my kids play in the dirt when they were very young, very rarely do they ever get sick. Then I see people trying to live in a sterile environment, and guess what? Always sick.
      • exactly this is why there are many companies that make some very fine detergents to clean the clothes after they get messy.

      • by Anonymous Coward

        I was so gross as a child I disgusted my parents. I remember vividly literally making mud pies under the pine trees with a pie plate, dirt, and digging up what I called "treasure"; it was buried cat feces. I gleefully made the stinkiest mud pies possible and taste-tested them.

        I picked up dead birds from the ground, played with bugs, dug under rocks, etc.

        As a middle-aged man, I can cycle 50km a day 5 days/week, my yearly check-up is perfect, my body doesn't look like the typical paunchy, tired, gray-haired p

        • by MacTO ( 1161105 )

          If you're cycling 50 km/day, it is likely that you are making ongoing lifestyle choices that contribute to your health. You probably don't have to attribute those choices to genetics or micro-organisms.

          • Re:Makes sense (Score:4, Insightful)

            by Oligonicella ( 659917 ) on Friday September 04, 2015 @10:57PM (#50460969)

            Don't attach too much but don't downplay their contribution either. Remember Jim FIxx the author of The Complete Book of Running. Heart attack while jogging at 52. Genetics and microbial exposure are part of your health makup.
            .

            • Genetics and microbial exposure are part of your health makup.

              As in most of it. It's weird, looking back through my family history, teh men tend to live to right around 85 years old, except for accident or war.

              My father's generation, with modern medical assistance, better health care, and healthier lifestyle choices, lived to....... 85 years old.

              The idea that doing this or that is going to make you live 30 years longer is merely wishful thinking. Moderation in all things isn't dramatic, but it's the truth.

          • If you're cycling 50 km/day, it is likely that you are making ongoing lifestyle choices that contribute to your health. You probably don't have to attribute those choices to genetics or micro-organisms.

            You'll be the healthiest guy in the dementia ward.

            It's rather amusing that the biggest chemical enhanced doping sport on earth is used as an example of good health decisions.

    • Re:Makes sense (Score:5, Informative)

      by Trepidity ( 597 ) <delirium-slashdotNO@SPAMhackish.org> on Friday September 04, 2015 @10:10PM (#50460857)

      There's quite a bit of writing about this, generally termed the hygiene hypothesis [wikipedia.org]. Some is based on good research, some not.

      • This sounds a bit like the theory that children are less likely to develop allergies to common foods like milk, eggs, wheat, and so on if exposed to them at a young age. I have no idea if that's factual or not, but based on how our bodies adapt and develop immunity to common pathogens, it doesn't seem like such an outrageous theory.

        • This sounds a bit like the theory that children are less likely to develop allergies to common foods like milk, eggs, wheat, and so on if exposed to them at a young age. I have no idea if that's factual or not, but based on how our bodies adapt and develop immunity to common pathogens, it doesn't seem like such an outrageous theory.

          My son would get these red blotchy marks all over when we took him along with us to visit out horse. We talked to his pediatrician about it, to see what could be done, or if we should keep him away from horses. He told us to keep taking him to the barn as long as it was just the splotches. Sure enough, a few more visits, and no more reaction. The doctor said a little dirt and dander is good.

          Interestingly enough, after he hit his teens, probably 3/4 of his Ice hockey team was on inhalers for athsma, and

    • Explain the cowpox/smallpox thing. Is there actually a correlation there or did you just pull some scienceism out of thin air? Seriously, WTF? Dirty farm air and the development of vaccination have nothing to do with each other unless you want to really reach. I suppose cowpox was contracted by farm workers so there's your brain's connection.
      • by Mashiki ( 184564 )

        There's no supposing on cowpox and people contracting it, milkmaids did get cowpox often. My mother has the scars on her hands from it from when her family lived in east-germany and they were farmers. But you're right on the rest, though there is enough circumstantial evidence to show that living in a sterile environment and not being exposed to contagions does make your immune system weaker.

      • Explain the cowpox/smallpox thing. Is there actually a correlation there or did you just pull some scienceism out of thin air? Seriously, WTF? Dirty farm air and the development of vaccination have nothing to do with each other unless you want to really reach. I suppose cowpox was contracted by farm workers so there's your brain's connection.

        People who contracted cowpox - which is a rather minor illness, were immune from smallpox, which is a major issue. And with the symptoms of smallpox being rather dramatically evident, people made the connection quickly, since the milkmaids and people around the cows had nice skin, not something that looked like the surface of Mercury.

        • As an interesting (or not) aside, if it was named small pox then there must have been a large pox disease. That was gonorrhea.
          • As an interesting (or not) aside, if it was named small pox then there must have been a large pox disease. That was gonorrhea.

            No, it was syphilis.

        • ...and yet we're talking about people being exposed to microbes, which is completely different from viral diseases. Again, how'd you pull that out of your ass?
          • ...and yet we're talking about people being exposed to microbes, which is completely different from viral diseases. Again, how'd you pull that out of your ass?

            By following and replying within the context of the conversation thread? You know, explain it to you?

            Jesus, who the fuck peed in your Wheaties today?

  • by AndyKron ( 937105 ) on Friday September 04, 2015 @09:21PM (#50460771)
    And stay out of the silo!
  • The researcher interviewed on the NPR story said <paraphrase>living on a farm during the first year of life reduced the likelihood of having allergies later in life</paraphrase>

    He went on to say that living on a farm later in life did nothing, it had to be in the first year.

  • by argStyopa ( 232550 ) on Friday September 04, 2015 @10:23PM (#50460883) Journal

    I would gasp in surprise, but I was raised on a farm so I'll just breathe normally.

  • it's really just car smog folks. This isn't that hard. I had to move to Phoenix for a job and I can see the effect it has. It's always funny to me to see folks trying to come up with a hundred reasons why something is something except the one they don't want it to be. Kinda like that Onion story about Americans wondering when mass shootings will end while it points out the rest of the world doesn't have this problem...

    For a start ban fast food drive throughs. Silly as it sounds card idling there are a la
    • For a start ban fast food drive throughs. Silly as it sounds card idling there are a large part of the smog problem.

      it's easier to make cars smarter and it's impossible to make people smarter and expecting otherwise is a sure symptom of insanity

      • For a start ban fast food drive throughs. Silly as it sounds card idling there are a large part of the smog problem.

        Or we could just require fast food restaurants to go even faster, so that no cars idle at all.

        The payment could just be made through something like FastTrack (or the equivalent in your country or state). You could pre-order your food before you even enter your car. In the end, you would just go to the drive thru to pick up your food and drinks. That would end up saving a ton of emissions and time.

      • Average intelligence of people worldwide today is higher than it was.

        1) Better nutrition
        2) Better medical care
        3) Reduced disease burden
        4) Elimination of environmental toxins (lead for one!)

        So no, it's actually not impossible AT ALL to make people smarter, though it may be impossible to make an individual such as yourself smarter..... But who knows, in a few years there might be a pill.

        --PM

    • Hi! I make Firefox Plug-ins

      kind of like saying "hi, I make buggy whips and whale oil lamps"

    • by Jeremi ( 14640 )

      Discuss among yourselves the rest of the crap we can do to reduce city emissions (public transit would be nice).

      If nothing else, sooner or later electric vehicles will be cheaper to own than gas vehicles, at which point the locally-emitted-smog problem will start to largely go away.

    • by khallow ( 566160 )

      For a start ban fast food drive throughs.

      Better ban intersections. There's a lot more cars idling there than at the drive thru,

      • by GNious ( 953874 )

        For a start ban fast food drive throughs.

        Better ban intersections. There's a lot more cars idling there than at the drive thru,

        Is why modern countries have been putting up round-abouts everywhere for the last 20+ years

    • by KGIII ( 973947 )

      A fairly close friend died recently. He died from a fatal asthma attack that, it seems, failed to wake him. He spent his entire life living in NW Maine in a town that still has fewer than 2500 people.

      Actually, Wikipedia indicates a population of 929 people in Industry, Maine.

      I'd surmise it is more than smog.

      • In Maine... where you hide indoors 85% of the year because it's either cold as hell outside or the mosquito swarms are like to murder you.

        • by KGIII ( 973947 )

          True but the homes are drafty and let in the outdoor air. Additionally, we've got to go out and retrieve the firewood and hunt for food.

          Actually, it's truly a four season state. That's why I moved here when I retired. I don't take advantage of it enough but the locals do. They don't seem to mind slathering themselves in 99% deet or bundling up with 32 layers.

          Also, your number may be a bit off - you seem to have forgotten both 'mud season' and 'black flies.' I made the mistake of wearing a white long sleeved

  • I hear being gored by a bull cures hiccups.

      -1 WTF

  • Some Indians (particularly some Hindus) consider Cow urine as having medicinal properties - according to Vedas. So they use cow urine in some ritualistic drinks. :). Sounds funny, but it may have some basis though it may not have written scientific reasoning. The western "rationalized drug discovery" is relatively new compared to other drug-discovery-by-just-observation.
    • Urine has ammonia. And ammonia does have some medicinal properties [www.nhs.uk] according to western science. There is actually nothing weird about that.

  • by ihtoit ( 3393327 ) on Saturday September 05, 2015 @12:17AM (#50461157)

    I can't agree more with this. Countryside air is a lot easier to deal with than city air. The biggest mistake I ever made was moving back to the city. I should've stayed on the coast, where the offshore wind was clean and crisp, onshore blew over a dairy farm and while it smelled like a cow's bum, at least I could sleep through the night without bolting upright at Dark O'clock for a blast on the salbutamol..

  • I grew up on a farm and I have asthma. I would have put it down to the consumption of raw, unpasteurised milk by farmers and their families.
    A farm raised child eats much more unprocessed food and is exposed to much higher levels of bacteria.
    The theory that asthma is a modern disease caused by living in a world that's too clean makes a lot of sense.
    We've descended from people who survived due to their strong immune defence.
    This inherited army needs a fight and when it has nothing better to do it attacks it's

  • An old Italian tradition was to take babies to farms to smell the air. Occasionally old people with an ailment would do it too.

    • by evanh ( 627108 )

      Yeah, I thought it was common knowledge that asthma was due to environmental training, or rather the lack of.

    • Recall that in 'old Italy' (or London or Trenton, NJ) the cities were total pigsties. Horses, pigs, dogs, people crapping all over the place. Running water only in some places. Treated sewage nowhere.

      Farms were places of pristine nature, relatively speaking.

      I think you all have this backwards.

  • We used to play outside, eat mud, get covered in dirt and our bodies built up an immunity to a lot of things. Nowadays kids spend their time glued to a TV, laptop or games console and their parents have houses with higher than hospital levels of cleanliness so the resistance to stuff we built up as kids never happens. When they're then exposed to the outside world they then catch all kinds of nasty stuff.
  • by nospam007 ( 722110 ) * on Saturday September 05, 2015 @06:56AM (#50461821)

    Nice to know. If in the future, somebody asks me: "Have you been raised in a barn?" when I failed to close the door, I can say: "Yes, that's why I don't have any Asthma."

  • Or their ancestors decided not to be farmers if they had asthma. A genetic defect preventing the creation of a certain response usually isn't environmentally caused, it's solely genetic.
  • Still possible that farmers with asthma just don't hold up to reproduce as often - that selection would probably take less than a few hundred years.
  • It has been established that children that consume clean raw milk have much lower rates of asthma than the general population. The explanation given is that the active microbes in raw milk help build the body's immune system which has much more to do with gut flora than previously known.

    I know this has no scientific experience but I know that since I have been drinking raw milk, starting 10 years ago at age 49, I get sick much less often than I used to.

  • Remember that this study is european, so they're talking about real dairy farms (or something like that), not The Meatrix [themeatrix.com]...
  • Typical example of the way our industry works. While the problem was found with the way of life and the fact that we isolate ourselves from nature. Instead finding the way to bring nature back into our life, the solution is to take this part of nature, put it into a pill form and monetize the hell out of it. What else is new...

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