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Causes of Asthma

Causes of Asthma – Why Me? Why Us? Why Them?

Exactly why any individual becomes asthmatic is still an open question, although considerable research dollars are being expended all round the world in pursuit of the causes of asthma.

However, in combination, certain candidates or culprits (e.g., genetic predisposition and some environmental factors), are thought to cause the development of asthma, usually in earlier life.

Predisposition

Researchers are particularly interested in:

• atopic hypersensitivity (allergic reactions), where the susceptibility appears to ‘run in families’. Thus asthma may arise after contact with certain pollens in those people genetically predisposed.
• people whose parents are asthmatics
• childhood respiratory conditions
• exposure to cigarette smoke while in the womb and in infancy
• childhood exposure to some airborne allergens
• contraction of certain viral infections in infancy/early childhood when the immune system is not yet fully developed

If familial atopic hypersensitivity or asthma is present, airborne allergens arising from house dust mites, pollens and molds, and irritants such as tobacco smoke or aerosol-sprayed substances and/or their propellants, may affect the way in which our airways react to substances inhaled in normal respiration. However, individual reactions to different factors vary, so that some people may develop asthma and others not, even when predisposition exists.

Hygiene

One theory about the causes of asthma which has had some exposure to the general public relates to hygiene, that is to say that the Western world’s ‘obsession’ with cleanliness, hygiene and sanitation has affected the way we live to the extent that children are no longer exposed to what used to be typical early childhood infections. Nor are they exposed to the same range of environmental factors as were their parents. Thus, the theory runs, the development of such children’s immune systems also differs from earlier generations’ immune system development. This may lead to an increased risk of atopic hypersensitivity and asthma, especially where these things ‘run in the family’. We discussed this hypothesis on our introductory page ‘Asthma‘, in particular noting some observations from the National Asthma Council Australia.

If you would like to know what the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has to say, you may care to visit http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/, where there are a number of easily understood pages on the subject of asthma.