Allergies Soar in Greenland, Modernization to Blame
Fri Aug 30, 2:24 PM ET

By Jacqueline Stenson

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Providing further support for the theory that modern living contributes to allergic illnesses, new study findings suggest that allergies nearly doubled among residents of Greenland from 1987 to 1998, a period marked by substantial Westernization.

"We were surprised that an increase of this magnitude could occur within a relatively short period of 10 years," study author Dr. Tyra Grove Krause of the Statens Serum Institut in Copenhagen, Denmark, told Reuters Health.

Krause and colleagues analyzed blood samples taken from 859 Greenlanders aged 15 to 80 who participated in sexually transmitted disease screening programs in 1987 or 1998. Study participants were considered to have allergies if their blood contained antibodies to common allergens such as grass, dog, cat and dust mites.

About 10% of study participants (39 of 392) had evidence of allergies in 1987, compared with 19% (87 of 467) in 1998. Increases occurred in all age groups but were greatest among those 15 to 19, for whom allergies jumped almost fivefold during the study period.

"We were surprised that the increase was observed throughout all age groups, as it has generally been believed that risk factors of allergic diseases would only operate in early childhood," Krause said.

The reason for the jump is unclear. Krause, whose findings are published in the August 31st issue of The Lancet, suggested it may somehow be related to Greenland's evolution from a traditional hunting and fishing society to a modern, urbanized society in which most residents work in trade, administration and services, eat more of a Western diet, and live in bigger houses.

"The fact that the families generally are smaller and the number of square meters per individual (in the home) has increased" may have resulted in less immune system stimulation and greater allergies, Krause said.

In the United States, allergic illnesses including hay fever and asthma now affect up to 50 million people--an all-time high.

SOURCE: The Lancet 2002;360:691-692.


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