Children have a somewhat increased risk of asthma if the mother has used paracetamol during pregnancy, according to a new Norwegian study.
Infants who have been given paracetamol in their first half year of life will be at 29 percent higher risk of developing asthma than others. It shows a new study from the Institute of Public Health and Bristol University, writes the website Forskning.no.
Children who have been exposed to paracetamol in the womb will be 13 percent higher risk of developing asthma than children who have not been exposed to the drug.
45,000 Norwegian children participated in the survey, which is part of the Great Mother-Child Cohort Study.
Researcher Maria Magnus at the NIPH thinks the findings does not give any cause for concern. In total, there were only five percent of the children who used medication for asthma at the age of seven.
– Since the risk for asthma is already at a low level, the increase will not be of great importance. Most of the children who are exposed to acetaminophen, do not get asthma, she emphasizes.
Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today
