Pets may reduce child's risk of developing food allergies, study finds

BOSTON - Having pets in the home before birth and during early infancy may reduce a child's risk of developing food allergies, and the type of pet may make a difference.

Researchers in Japan studied data on more than 97,000 mothers and their children and found that exposure to dogs or cats during fetal development and in early infancy was associated with a 13-16% lower risk of food allergies at least until age three.  

For dogs, the risk was reduced for allergies to egg, milk, and nuts.  

For cats, it was egg, wheat, and soybean.  Having turtles or birds did not seem to make a difference and hamster exposure was linked to a higher risk of nut allergies, perhaps due to the nuts hamsters eat.

In:
• Allergies
• Health Care

Mallika Marshall, MD

Mallika Marshall, MD is an Emmy-award-winning journalist and physician who has served as the HealthWatch Reporter for CBS Boston/WBZ-TV for over 20 years. A practicing physician Board Certified in both Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Dr. Marshall serves on staff at Harvard Medical School and practices at Massachusetts General Hospital at the MGH Chelsea Urgent Care and the MGH Revere Health Center, where she is currently working on the frontlines caring for patients with COVID-19. She is also a host and contributing editor for Harvard Health Publications (HHP), the publishing division of Harvard Medical School.

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