Background. The frequency of allergic diseases shortly after reunification differed between East- and West Germany. Design. In this prospective birth cohort study, 3,097 newborns were recruited in Munich, Leipzig and the Rhineland in 1998. Questionnaires, house dust and volatile organic compound (VOC) analyses, as well as blood tests, allowed to associate lifestyle related factors with immune parameters and the onset of atopic diseases. Results. The frequency of atopic eczema (AE) differed significantly between the study centers. Solid food introduction past the sixth month had no influence on the development of an AE. Exposure to high concentrations of endotoxin in house dust early in life might protect against the development of an allergic immune response whereas exposure to allergens and indoor air chemicals changed the immune reactivity in the direction of an increased atopic risk. Conclusions. The LISA study will help to identify associations between different lifestyle related factors and parameters of the immune system and atopic diseases.      «

Background. The frequency of allergic diseases shortly after reunification differed between East- and West Germany. Design. In this prospective birth cohort study, 3,097 newborns were recruited in Munich, Leipzig and the Rhineland in 1998. Questionnaires, house dust and volatile organic compound (VOC) analyses, as well as blood tests, allowed to associate lifestyle related factors with immune parameters and the onset of atopic diseases. Results. The frequency of atopic eczema (AE) differed signi...     »