Pill link to child asthma

Children whose mothers take the Pill are up to twice as likely to suffer from conditions such as eczema and asthma, according to new research.

A study found higher rates of allergies among those whose mothers used oral contraceptives before becoming pregnant. The results revealed that children whose mothers only started taking the Pill after giving birth also had a higher chance of suffering from conditions such as wheezing, runny or blocked noses, and itchy rashes or itchy skin.

Experts are divided over whether the link is due to a substance in the Pill itself - which could be passed on via breast-feeding - or whether women who use the Pill are more likely to raise children in unhealthy environments.

The study was carried out at the Institute of Epidemiology in East Germany and involved 2,754 children aged between five and 14. The youngsters were divided into three groups: those whose mothers had never taken the Pill; those whose mothers took it before deciding to have a child; and those whose mothers only started after giving birth.

The results showed that 10.5 per cent of youngsters whose mothers took the Pill before becoming pregnant suffered from eczema - more than double the rate for the offspring of non-Pill users, which was 4.1 per cent.

The rate of allergies causing itchy skin or skin rashes was almost double in the Pill-using groups, standing at around 22 per cent, compared to 12.5 per cent of the children of non-Pill users. The risk of asthma was significantly higher too, with 5.6 per cent of children whose mothers used the Pill before pregnancy, and 7.1 per cent of those whose mothers used it after the birth, suffering from the condition, compared to just 4.4 per cent in the non-Pill user group.

The findings are likely to spark concern among the 3.5 million women who take the Pill in Britain.

Some experts, including Dr Matthias Wjst, on the research team, have suggested that hormonal changes women who are on the Pill undergo could damage unborn offspring. Others believe the Pill may not be to blame.

Dr Joachim Heinrich, who led the research, said: "Our study shows that children whose mothers took the Pill before pregnancy are more likely to suffer from allergies, but so are children whose mothers only started taking the Pill after they were born.

"One possibility is that children whose mothers only start using it after birth are exposed to the oral contraceptive through breast feeding. Like all drugs taken by breast-feeding mothers, small amounts of the Pill can be transferred to the infant via the milk. But I believe the link could be non-biological, and due to external factors."

Family planning groups urged women not to be deterred from taking the Pill. A Family Planning Association spokeswoman said: "There is a huge volume of research showing that the Pill is safe, and has no negative effect on offspring. When women stop using the Pill, they become pregnant precisely because the Pill is out of their system. There are no traces of it left in their bodies which could damage the baby."