Let the Kids Play Dirty, Study Suggests

Got allergies? Asthma? You might blame Mom for keeping such a clean house.

A study of more than 800 rural European children ages 6 to 13 found that the kids living in the dustiest environments were less likely to suffer from asthma and hay fever.

The research in today’s issue of the New England Journal of Medicine was another sign that kids raised in the cleanest conditions face a greater risk of developing a hypersensitivity to substances that trigger allergic reactions.

The study found that exposure to dirt seemed to desensitize children to substances that spark allergic reactions.