Regular Exercise Can Help Ward Off Allergic Conjunctivitis in Children

Physical fitness may help reduce the risk for allergic conjunctivitis (AC) in schoolchildren, according to a nationwide study presented at the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) 2022 annual meeting, held in Chicago from September 30 to October 3.

The researchers reviewed the records of 904,456 Taiwanese schoolchildren who were examined when they were 10 years of age from 2009 to 2018 to assess the association between physical fitness and the risk for AC.

The nationwide Physical Fitness Test (PFT) was used as an objective measure of physical fitness, including aerobic capacity, muscular strength, cardiorespiratory endurance and flexibility. AC occurring in the cohort was tracked through national registers. 

The multivariate analysis that considered age, body mass index (BMI), comorbidities and socioeconomic and environmental factors. The researchers found that an increase in the level of aerobic capacity (hazard ratio [HR] per quartile=0.89; 95% CI, 0.85-0.93; P <.001) and cardiorespiratory endurance (HR per quartile=0.92; 95% CI, 0.91-0.94; P <.001) was associated with decreased risks of AC.

Overall, these findings suggest that high physical fitness may reduce the risk of AC, and that the association is consistent in all BMI groups.