Why bacteria is not that bad for kids
A new study suggests excessive exposure to disinfectants at home could make children overweight
Exposure to disinfectants used at home could be making children overweight by altering their gut microbiota, a new study suggests. However, the same association with detergents was not found. |
You may think that by obsessively cleaning your house, you are keeping your child safe from germs and viruses. However, those very cleaning products could be playing a role in your child’s weight issues.
A study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal suggests that exposure to disinfectants and multisurface cleaners used at home could be making children overweight by altering their gut microbiota.
The study analysed the gut flora of 757 infants from the general population at age 3-4 months and weight at ages 1 and 3 years, looking at exposure to common cleaning products.
It found that altered gut flora in babies 3-4 months old showed lower levels of Haemophilus and Clostridium bacteria but higher levels of Lachnospiraceae. However, the same association with detergents or eco-friendly cleaners was not found.
On the other hand, babies living in households that used ecofriendly cleaners had different microbiota and were less likely to be overweight as toddlers, the study found.
The data that Canadian researchers used was from the Canadian Healthy Infant Longitudinal Development (CHILD) birth cohort and the findings were compared to the World Health Organisation growth charts.
While this study, as well as similar ones, call for further investigation, researchers conclude that using eco-friendly products can lead to a generally healthier overall lifestyle for all, not just for children.
Gulf News speaks to experts in the UAE to gauge how such reports should be viewed.
What are gut microbiota?
Dr Sridhar Kalyanasundaram, consultant neonatologist and head of department at Zulekha Hospital, Dubai, says, “We are born with no bacteria in our body; however, this changes within the first few hours to days when our body starts getting colonised with a plethora of bacteria, many of which set up a long-term symbiotic relationship with us. “We have more bacteria in our body than the number of cells and [they] range up to 1,014 organisms in our gut. We also have resident flora on our skin, mouth, airways, etc. This is our microbiota, and this
changes depending on various factors such as (in babies) the mode of delivery and breast feeding (vaginal delivery and breast feeding give us healthy flora compared to formula feeding and delivery by LSCS — Lower Section Caesarean Section), genetics, the environment we live in, antibiotic use, etc.
“In addition, gut microbiota helps in resisting pathogenic bacteria getting a foothold, thus reducing the risk of infection.”
Dr Revathi Srinivasan, specialist paediatrician at Aster
Clinic in Al Nahda, Dubai, says, “Children are essentially born without microbes in their gut, and they are immediately colonised upon birth. Healthier maternal lifestyles and eating habits contribute to healthy gut microbes in the baby up to nine months of life.
“On this foundation, the introduction of family foods is the main driver of development of the complex microbial ecosystem in the gut after the age of nine months. By the age of three, an individual’s gut microbiota gets established and is the same as that in an adult.”
What’s the role of gut bacteria?
“The gut microbiota has a role in many of our regular functions — [building] appetite, extent to which our foods are digested/ absorbed, satiety [all of these affect obesity risk], bowel movement [normal vs constipation],” says Dr Kalyanasundaram. “[Gut microbiota] even impacts our mood and personality.”
Should such studies worry us?
On this particular study, Dr Kalyanasundaram says, “The Canadian study did not show a conclusive link between disinfectant use and obesity, but did show a pattern of predominance of a particular group of bacteria [Lachnospiraceae] associated with higher BMI.
“There are many factors which could have affected the study results — the authors confirm that the rate of vaginal delivery/breast feeding vs Caesarean delivery/ formula feeding was different between the groups. It is well known that both these factors have a clear impact on our gut bacterial pattern as well as risk of obesity and so, it is hard to attribute the effect to the use of disinfectants alone. It is important to consider all these factors, and not rush to conclusions.”
The environment we live in affects the gut flora — and living in a very clean, disinfected environment creates a selection bias in terms of the variety of organisms that stay in our system.”
Dr Sridhar Kalyanasundaram | Neonatologist