Pregnant moms’ exposure to electronics may trigger baby asthma

Asthma is the leading cause of chronic illness in children, affecting as many as 10 to 12 percent of children in the United States.

There are several risk factors for developing childhood asthma, including family history of asthma and/or allergies, frequent respiratory infections, low birth weight and exposure to tobacco smoke before and/or after birth.

Link found between asthma risk and EMFs
Now a new study suggests one more suspect behind the rising number of asthma cases in children.

In their study, scientists in California found a link between the risk of asthma and electromagnetic fields (EMFs), energy that can’t be seen or felt and that is generated by household appliances, electronic devices, cars, and power lines.

The researchers found that children whose mothers had high exposure to electromagnetic fields while pregnant were at a greater risk of developing asthma.

These children had more than triple the risk of developing asthma compared to babies born to women not exposed to EMFs, they found.

Study details
For the study, De-Kun Li, MD, PhD, a reproductive and perinatal epidemiologist at the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research in Oakland, Calif., and colleagues looked at 801 pregnant women, who wore monitors that measured their exposure to magnetic fields for 24 hours.

Using those electronic medical records, the researchers’ team followed the study women’s children for 13 years to see which children developed asthma.

During the follow-up, 130 children, or 20.8 percent of study participants, developed the respiratory disease, and most of these cases were diagnosed before age 5.

Study findings
After comparing the exposure levels during pregnancy to rates of asthma, the researchers found that children whose mothers had the highest exposure levels were 3.5 times more likely to develop asthma than those who were less exposed to EMFs.

In other words, about 33 percent of children born to women with the highest EMF exposures developed asthma compared to about 13 percent of children born to women who had low EMF exposures.

“The message here is that exposure to electromagnetic fields is not good, and we need to pay attention to its adverse effect on health,” Li said.

He added: “Electromagnetic field exposure is ubiquitous so any adverse health effect could cause a serious public health problem.

“The best way to reduce your magnetic field exposure is distance. Pregnant women should try to limit their exposure to known sources and keep distance from them when they are in use.”