Browsing by Subject "allergy"

Immune-mediated diseases, such as various allergies and asthma, are increasing rapidly in an urbanized world where biodiversity is steadily declining. Decreased biodiversity and homogenous microbiota have been associated with weaker immune defence. Studies show that contact with the natural environment enriches the human microbiota, promotes immune response, and protects against allergies and inflammatory diseases. For this reason, in order to prevent immune-mediated diseases, solutions have been sought from nature-based approaches in which the immune system encounters environmental microbial stimuli in a natural way. The aim of this master's thesis was to study how different nature-based materials (sod and forest floor) affect the skin microbiota of kindergarten-age children and to examine how different factors such as varying weather conditions and different sampling times affect the results. The results supported the hygiene hypothesis and previous research according to which increasing biodiversity can have a positive effect on human skin microbial communities. A positive effect on children's skin was achieved with sod alone, which is important information in the development of suitable biodiverse materials for urban planning. The results also supported the surmise that different weather conditions and sampling methods can significantly affect the results.