Children who live in damp, water-damaged homes may be more likely than other kids to develop nasal allergies, according to a population-based prospective cohort study in American Journal of Epidemiology. Researchers at the Institute of Health Sciences in Oulu, Finland, followed 1,863 children (who were 1 to 7 years old at baseline) from Espoo, Finland, for six years. 

Among the children whose parents reported dampness in the home, 16 percent went on to be diagnosed with allergic rhinitis during the next six years, compared with just under 12 percent of children whose parents reported no dampness.  Those whose parents reported any mold or water damage in the home at study outset were 55 percent more likely than other children to develop allergic rhinitis.