|
Black cats are much more likely than lighter colored cats to trigger allergic reactions, although researchers are not sure why.
Researchers studied 321 patients with allergies and found that dark-colored cats were four times more likely to trigger symptoms such as sneezing, wheezing and overall misery than light-colored cats.
Compared to non-cat owners, people who let their dark cats into the bedroom were nearly 20 times more likely to have moderate or severe allergy symptoms.
Keeping the cat out of the bedroom should be a priority for allergy sufferers, study author Dr. Shahzad Hussain of Long Island College Hospital in New York told Reuters Health.
Although researchers did not measure the levels of potential allergens in the different colored cats, they do plan on measuring these levels in a follow-up study.
Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (publication pending)
| 