Pollution exposure affects baby's asthma risk

Women who are exposed to high levels of air pollution during their pregnancy may be unknowingly increasing the risk of their babies developing asthma in childhood, according to a new study.

Research conducted by scientists at the University of British Columbia in Canada found that expectant mothers who live close to busy roads with high volumes of traffic are 25 per cent more likely to give birth to a child who is diagnosed with asthma before the age of five.

This discovery was made following extensive analysis of data relating to more than 650,000 Canadian children over a ten-year period. Doctors looked at the level of traffic-related pollution their mothers were exposed to - which was based on their postcode - during pregnancy in correlation to childhood asthma diagnoses.

Dan Smyth, chair of the European Lung Foundation, commented: "Air pollution affects 100 per cent of the population and this study highlights the harmful effects of air pollution right from the moment we are created."

To lower their unborn babies' risk of developing asthma, the researchers recommend that parents-to-be install high-efficiency particulate air filters in their homes to cleanse the air from toxins.