Early paracetamol use linked to asthma

By ANNE BESTON

Giving children antibiotics or paracetamol early in life may increase their risk of asthma, Massey health researchers say.

They carried out a study involving more than 4000 children and found those given antibiotics or paracetamol when under 4 years had a 10 per cent higher chance of being asthmatic.

Professor Neil Pearce, of Massey's Centre for Public Health Research, said the study, published in the international Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, backed overseas research findings.

"It's previously been shown overseas that if, as an adult, you are currently taking paracetamol, you are more likely to have asthma symptoms," he said.

"But what is different about this study is that we asked about paracetamol use very early in life, then asked about asthma six years later. It's the first study that's actually done that."

The researchers questioned parents of 1584 children who had had a notifiable, serious infection such as campylobacter or meningitis, at 0 to 4 years old.

The children were prescribed or had taken antibiotics or paracetamol.

They then compared those children's asthma rates with 2530 children taken at random from the population.

Of the first group, 25 per cent had a higher risk of asthma symptoms compared with the control group, where the rate was 15 per cent.

Children given antibiotics early in life had a 28 per cent higher asthma risk than the control group, where the rate was 16 per cent.

"It doesn't mean you should stop using antibiotics or paracetamol when it's appropriate," Professor Pearce said, "but it does add to other evidence that these things may be involved in the development of asthma.

"But we really need to understand the mechanisms a lot better."