Hay Fever Warning ; EDGBASTON

TRAFFIC fumes could be causing more children to develop hay fever, according to latest findings by Birmingham professors.

Researchers at Birmingham University, in Edgbaston, have spent months investigating a link between the pollutants in car exhaust fumes and the development of the allergy in children. An international group from the university’s environmental medicine department teamed up with the National Cheng Kung University, in Taiwan, to study more than 32,000 schoolchildren in the Far East country.

They found increased exposure to traffic pollutants, including carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides, significantly increased a child’s risk of developing hay fever, also called allergic rhinitis. The results add strength to the team’s previous study warning that traffic pollution was linked to asthma.

Professor Jouni Jaakkola, director of Birmingham University’s Institute for Environmental Medicine said: “Although the symptoms are not dangerous, they are unpleasant and disruptive for many people. They can influence daily activities and may even limit the choice of future career.”

Hay fever is an allergic reaction causing nasal congestion, a clear runny nose, sneezing, teary eyes, nose and eye itching.