- Joined
- Nov 24, 2008
- Messages
- 24,040
- Points
- 113
I think of all the causes of respiratory allergies you can find in the world, dust mites must be one of th emost improbable. Allergies are more often caused by the quality of air that we breath, or by the food we eat (especially in today's processed food with animals being fed all sorts of steriods and antibiotics), but I have never heard of dust mites. I would have expected a serious study to focus on the air pollution, in particular the Indonesian forest fires, the traffic pollution, the decades old practice of chlorinating water, and our diet. Instead, the blame is put on a dust mite. That is why NUS cannot be considered a serious school for research.
The primary cause of respiratory allergies in Singapore is exposure to house dust mites, according to a study by the country’s national research agency and the National University of Singapore (NUS).
Scientists and clinicians from A*STAR’s Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN) and NUS also suggested that changes in lifestyle resulting in more time spent indoors increase the exposure to high loads of house dust mite allergens.
Their findings were published in an article in the latest issue of scientific journal “Allergy”. In the article, the researchers noted that around 80 per cent of some 8,000 participants were reactive to house dust mites, while only showing minor reactivity to any other allergen.
They said this high rate of reactions from house dust mites are strongly correlated with increased rates of allergic rhinitis and asthma in Singapore.
The researchers also found that participants who originate from non-tropical countries were less likely to become sensitive to house dust mites when they first arrived in Singapore but then became more likely to become sensitive as they spent more time in the country.
The increase in “sensitisation” rates was accompanied by an increase in airway allergies, they noted.
Meanwhile, migrants from countries which have similar tropical climate to Singapore, such as Malaysia, showed comparable rates as Singaporeans, the researchers added.
The researchers also noted that with the identification of this trigger and its dominance in Singapore, scientists can develop more effective allergy mitigation strategies and improve quality of life for sufferers.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), it is estimated that approximately 300 million people suffer from asthma worldwide and even more are affected by allergic rhinitis.
Both conditions are now increasingly common in Southeast Asian populations.
The new study also revealed that close to 15 per cent of Singapore’s adult population are affected by asthma and nearly 40 per cent are troubled by allergic rhinitis.
The primary cause of respiratory allergies in Singapore is exposure to house dust mites, according to a study by the country’s national research agency and the National University of Singapore (NUS).
Scientists and clinicians from A*STAR’s Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN) and NUS also suggested that changes in lifestyle resulting in more time spent indoors increase the exposure to high loads of house dust mite allergens.
Their findings were published in an article in the latest issue of scientific journal “Allergy”. In the article, the researchers noted that around 80 per cent of some 8,000 participants were reactive to house dust mites, while only showing minor reactivity to any other allergen.
They said this high rate of reactions from house dust mites are strongly correlated with increased rates of allergic rhinitis and asthma in Singapore.
The researchers also found that participants who originate from non-tropical countries were less likely to become sensitive to house dust mites when they first arrived in Singapore but then became more likely to become sensitive as they spent more time in the country.
The increase in “sensitisation” rates was accompanied by an increase in airway allergies, they noted.
Meanwhile, migrants from countries which have similar tropical climate to Singapore, such as Malaysia, showed comparable rates as Singaporeans, the researchers added.
The researchers also noted that with the identification of this trigger and its dominance in Singapore, scientists can develop more effective allergy mitigation strategies and improve quality of life for sufferers.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), it is estimated that approximately 300 million people suffer from asthma worldwide and even more are affected by allergic rhinitis.
Both conditions are now increasingly common in Southeast Asian populations.
The new study also revealed that close to 15 per cent of Singapore’s adult population are affected by asthma and nearly 40 per cent are troubled by allergic rhinitis.
