City parks neighbourhood and preschool children asthma in the city of Kaunas

Abstract

Background There is some evidence that access to urban green spaces is associated with a better health; however, the available evidence on the impact of green spaces on children asthma is scarce. Aims We examined the association between residence distance from city parks and preschool children asthma. Methods This study included 536 children 4-5 year’s old Kaunas city residents. Doctor’s diagnose and symptoms of allergic diseases were assessed by ISAAC-based questionnaires. We used a geographic information system (GIS) to assess the environmental exposures. According to the distance from the residents’ homes of each respondent to the nearest park, we determined three children exposure groups: residing within 300 m (referent group), 300-1000 m and more than 1000 m. The associations between distance from parks and prevalence of asthma were analysed by logistic regression models with and without adjustment for maternal education, age, passive smoking, body mass index, parental and other family members asthma, heating system, breast feeding, paracetamol and antibiotic use during first year, and NO2 exposure. Results An increase in the distance from city parks across 4-5 years old children was associated with an increase in odds ratio (OR) for children asthma (referent vs. third exposure group OR=1.41, 95% CI 0.34–5.78) after adjustment for potential confounders. Conclusions The present study findings suggest a beneficial effect of city parks neighbourhood on asthma risk amongst preschool children. Neighbourhood greenness may have an impact in prevalence of asthma and reducing related morbidity.