2023-09-11 13:33:06
A study led by researchers at the University of British Columbia (UBC) reveals a potential link between a set of bacteria present in the gut of toddlers and health problems such as eczema, asthma, food allergies and hay fever.
The study (New window) (in English), published in the scientific journal Nature Communications, looks at the characteristics of the intestinal microbiota linked to the development of certain health problems in children. The study results could lead to methods to predict whether a child will develop allergies and ways to prevent their occurrence, researchers say.
Previous studies have looked at individual diagnoses and linked specific gut bacteria to those diagnoses, says Charisse Petersen, study co-author and research associate at BC Children’s Hospital.
What we did was identify a common bacterial signature that could be universal in the development of major childhood allergies.
Four health problems, one bacterial profile
At the time of birth, babies come into contact with their first microbes, according to previous studies. It is therefore at this moment that the development of their intestinal microbiota begins, i.e. all of the microorganisms present in the intestine.
If we compare children with allergies to those who do not, we see that the bacteria present in the infant’s intestine are very different and that this difference applies to all allergies. studied, she explains.
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Charisse Petersen, co-author of the study, indicates that bacteria present in the infant’s gut play an essential role in the development of the immune system, by helping to distinguish between good and bad signals.
Photo : Shutterstock / fizkes
This bacterial signature is the mark of dysbiosis, an unbalanced intestinal microbiota, which would lead to deterioration of the intestinal mucosa and an elevated inflammatory response in the intestine.
According to the director of the Center for Microbiome Research at McGill University, Irah King, who was not involved in the study, the strength of this study is that it attempts to find common factors between these conditions in order to to identify common treatment pathways.
It’s a real tour de force, he says.
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Baby diapers at the service of science
To further their research, the team of researchers looked at the content of thousands of layers.
We were able to prospectively look at the composition of infant bacteria in diapers and then ask what their health outcomes were at age 5. Did they develop allergies or not?, indicates Charisse Petersen.
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For the study, 1,115 children were followed from birth to age 5. Nearly half of the children showed no signs of allergy, while more than half were diagnosed with one or more allergic disorders.
Photo : Shutterstock / Africa Studio
The CHILD cohort
The UBC research team had access to data from the CHILD cohort, an acronym for Canadian Healthy Infant Longitudinal Development. This is a study that follows more than 3,000 children born between 2009 and 2012, in Vancouver, Edmonton, Winnipeg and Toronto, from birth to school age and beyond.
Information about these children, their parents and their environment was collected through biological samples, such as umbilical cord blood, breast milk, urine or stool, questionnaires, home assessments and clinical assessments.
Hope for allergy sufferers
For our community, it is hope, says Jennifer Gerdts, executive director at Food Allergies Canada. People with food allergies often have other comorbidities. They often have asthma. It is not uncommon for them to suffer from eczema, she adds.
Such a combination of conditions often arises from what is called the atopic march. Also called the allergy march, it describes the progression from eczema in early childhood to asthma and seasonal or food allergies in late childhood.
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More than three million Canadians report having at least one food allergy, according to Food Allergies Canada. This represents approximately 7% of the Canadian population.
Photo: getty images/istockphoto / piotr_malczyk
Instead of looking for a treatment or prevention mechanism that only addresses one of them, it would be very useful to address all of these problems, says Jennifer Gerdts.
Jenna Reynolds, Director of Programs and Services, Asthma Canada, agrees. What we learn from this study is that it is crucial to understand the multiple facets of these diseases, how they interact, so that we can work on how to treat and manage them.
For his part, Professor Irah King believes that a next step in understanding the onset of allergies is to evaluate how the identified bacteria directly influence the immune response.
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Breast milk contributes to the development of toddlers’ intestinal microbiota.
Photo : Shutterstock / HTeam
Play outside
Although Charisse Petersen specifies that we will still have to wait a few years to assess the clinical potential of the research, she explains that certain measures can be adopted to promote the development of toddlers’ intestinal microbiota and potentially reduce the risk of allergies.
It’s about exposing them to the different bacteria that make up our environment, that is to say letting them go out and play in the earth, she says.
The study also reveals that breastfeeding, with nutrients from breast milk, helps the microbiota develop in the infant’s intestine.
Research also suggests that exposure to antibiotics, when they are not necessary, should be reduced, since they can eliminate bacteria beneficial to the microbiota before they have time to become established.
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