Health Alert: Asthma Cases Among Children Rising

PHILADELPHIA (CBS 3) ― Asthma among children, especially in big cities like Philadelphia has been skyrocketing. Now scientists have a revolutionary explanation on why. Bacteria, like E. Coli is usually dangerous. But one germ that's commonly found in the stomach called H. pylori might be beneficial for youngsters. "Children that had H. pylori were much less likely to develop asthma, hay fever and eczema and other allergic skin conditions," said Dr. Martin Blaser, study researcher. He and colleagues found kids with the stomach bacteria were 30 to 60 percent less likely develop asthma. It's not clear why. But researchers say H. pylori has been slowly disappearing from the population. Part of the reason, the dramatic increase in the use of antibiotics. The drugs kill H. pylori and experts believe this may explain why... [read full story]