Farm kids get fewer allergies, international study finds

Growing up on a farm may help ward off allergies later in life, a new study suggests.  The study also found that women who spend their early years on a farm typically have stronger lungs than their suburban or city-dwelling peers.  Other research has suggested that exposure to germs and potential allergens in early childhood could protect people against allergies later. A team led by the University of Melbourne's Shyamali Dharmage put this "hygiene hypothesis" to the test. Dharmage is a professor in the Center for Epidemiology & Biostatistics.