Having a pet cat in the house can help to ward off asthma

♦ Keeping a cat in the home may prevent asthma in young children, according to Danish scientists.

A study of nearly 400 toddlers revealed that those growing up with a cat had a much lower likelihood of suffering from the condition.

Researchers believe this is due to a genetic variation that plays a significant role in triggering asthma and which is somehow switched off in the presence of a cat.

Jakob Stokholm, who led the study at the Copenhagen Studies on Asthma in Childhood Research Centre, said that the explanation could be related to bacteria carried by cats, and perhaps fungi or viruses that they brought into the home.