Breastfeeding Protects Against Allergic Asthma

Breastfeeding has proven to provide many benefits for babies and now protection from allergic asthma can be added to that list of benefits. A study found that airborne allergen is able to pass from mother to child through breast milk, which creates a tolerance to the allergen.
The study investigated whether exposing lactating mice to the airborne allergen ovalbumin, affected asthma development in the offspring. They found that ovalbumin was efficiently transferred from the mother to the neonate through the milk, leading to the development of immunological tolerance. Tolerance induction relied on the presence of transforming growth factor–beta and was mediated by regulatory CD4+ T lymphocytes, but did not require the transfer of immunoglobulins through the milk.
Allergic asthma affects 300 million people worldwide and is characterized by obstruction of the respiratory pathways in response to allergen exposure. Its prevalence has increased in recent decades, probably due to changes in environmental factors. Exposure to environmental antigens during infancy reduces the likelihood of developing asthma. The finding in this study may pave the way for the design of new strategies to prevent the development of allergic diseases.

Source: Nature Medicine