Atopy, home environment and the risk of childhood-onset type 1 diabetes: a population-based case-control study

The marked increases in the incidence of type 1 diabetes in recent decades strongly suggest the role of environmental influences. These environmental influences remain largely unknown.

To investigate atopy and home environment (such as children living at home, sharing a bedroom and house moves) as potential risk factors for type 1 diabetes.

In Northern Ireland, 175 children with type 1 diabetes and 4859 control children completed a questionnaire on atopy experience, family composition and home environment. Control children from two age groups (6-8 yr old and 13-14 yr old) were identified from randomly selected primary and secondary schools across Northern Ireland. Cases were identified from a population-based type 1 diabetes register.

There was little evidence of a difference in the proportion of participants with a history of atopy in the cases compared with controls. There was a significant reduction in the risk of diabetes in children who lived with more siblings {odds ratio (OR) = 0.58 [95% confidence interval (95% CI) 0.39-0.85] in children who lived with three or more siblings compared with one or none} and in children who moved house more often [OR = 0.59 (95% CI 0.40-0.88) in children who moved house twice or more compared with never].

The reduced risk of type 1 diabetes in children living with siblings, sharing a bedroom and moving house more often could reflect the protection afforded by exposure to infections in early life and consequently may provide support for the hygiene hypothesis.