A group of European scientists found that the risk of developing asthma in a child is due to the behavioral habits of not only his parents, but also grandparents.

Until now, it was believed that the predisposition to asthma is associated only with the habits of the mother: if she smokes, the risk of developing asthma in a child is high. But in the course of the study it turned out that the tobacco dependence of the fathers also affects the health of their offspring. Moreover, bad habits can trigger the appearance of asthma in offspring through the generation. A team of researchers from Oxford University confirmed the high risk of bronchial asthma in children of mothers who smoked during pregnancy, but at the same time found that asthma could also be a result of smoking father and grandparents. The relationship between the smoking of fathers and asthma in their children was confirmed, and, regardless of whether they smoked during the conception of the child or long before that. Even smoking in adolescence is a risk factor for developing asthma in their offspring.

The results of this study were published in early March 2018 in the authoritative British medical journal International Journal of Epidemiology, published under the auspices of Oxford University in the United Kingdom. Researchers interviewed 4,197 people, including 2,233 mothers and 1,644 fathers, in order to identify the relationship between the incidence of bronchial asthma in children and smoking in parents and the older generation of relatives.

The findings of this study are particularly relevant for Russia, where there are over 900,000 patients with bronchial asthma, accounting for 6.2% of the total population of the country. In this case, the disease affects the respiratory system of children, mostly preschool age, 2 times more often than adults: the prevalence of asthma among toddlers exceeds 10%. The wide spread of smoking among Russians supports these indicators at a high level: up to 60% of men and 16% of women smoke constantly.

"Treatment of bronchial asthma is a long and laborious affair. Usually complex therapy is recommended, and the patient should exclude from his daily life factors that stimulate the development of the disease, such as smoking. No less drug therapy in the treatment process is important diet and proper nutrition, active lifestyle. The patient is prescribed a whole complex of drugs, which consists of basic medicines that provide supportive and anti-inflammatory therapy, as well as drugs that stop asthmatic symptoms. The spectrum of asthma medications available for a wide range of patients has become much wider, largely due to the appearance of reproduced drugs on the market. They are used by 64% of patients, with 60% of them preferring domestic analogues, "- says the general director of the pharmaceutical company" Nativa "Alexander Malin.

Asthma has become widespread since the mid-80s of the 20th century. The reason for this was a sharp deterioration in the environmental situation - air pollution by oil refining products, poor nutrition, and a progressive sedentary lifestyle. Today, according to WHO statistics, bronchial asthma is the most common chronic disease among children.

About 235 million people around the world suffer from asthma, or 4 to 10% of the world's population. Asthma is causing huge losses to the economy: according to the CDC, countries annually lose up to 1% of the national GDP because of the costs of treating patients, omissions and idle time at work in connection with hospital. As one of the preventive measures aimed at fighting asthma, is the annual World Asthma Day, which is celebrated on the first Tuesday of May for 20 years already.

A source:.

Press service of the company "Nativa".