Obesity worsens asthma in preschool children

Findings from a new study published in the Journal of Clinical Immunology have concluded that obesity can add five weeks of asthma symptoms in children ages 2 to 5. The researchers also found that untreated children who were overweight had more asthma attacks than untreated children of a healthy weight. The study also found that the effectiveness of steroid inhalers is not reduced in overweight or obese pre-schoolers, findings that are the opposite in older children and adults. Therefore, this study suggests that either the pathways of inflammation are different in younger children, or that it takes a long time for obesity to reduce the effectiveness of inhaled corticosteroids.

Overall, the study included data from 736 children, and is a retrospective analysis, making the conclusions slightly weaker. Therefore, the researchers hope that further research with a larger number of children might take place, and that this study is the catalyst for it.