This study compared the prevalence of asthma in travelling schoolboys and s
ettled controls to determine whether the travelling lifestyle may be a prot
ective factor in the development of asthma.
Information was collected by parental responses to the ISAAC (International
Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood) questionnaire. The design was
a cross-sectional study with descriptive and analytical components. The sub
jects were six to twelve year old schoolboys from all male travelling child
ren in Cork and from a selection of settled schoolboys, In addition the stu
dy collected information on the predictor variables - age, passive smoking
and number of siblings.