Although it is plausible that environmental airborne bacterial endotoxin exposure may protect against the development of asthma, there is considerable reason for caution regarding this hypothesis.
Does environmental endotoxin exposure prevent asthma?
The review suggests caution regarding the hypothesis that environmental endotoxin exposure protects against asthma development.
The evidence as to whether exposure to environmental airborne endotoxin plays a protective or an inducing role in the development of asthma is reviewed. Studies of endotoxin and atopy, endotoxin and asthma, and farming and asthma are considered and, in each instance, a distinction is made between evidence of primary causation and evidence of secondary causation. It is concluded that, although it is plausible that bacterial endotoxin may protect against the development of asthma, there is considerable reason for caution regarding this hypothesis.
Jeroen Douwes (Tue,) conducted a review in Asthma. Environmental airborne endotoxin exposure was evaluated on Development of asthma. Although it is plausible that environmental airborne bacterial endotoxin exposure may protect against the development of asthma, there is considerable reason for caution regarding this hypothesis.