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Asthma is the most common chronic disease of childhood, affecting one in seven Canadian children (and more than three million Canadians of all ages). It is the most common reason for children to be admitted to the hospital and for them to miss school. It is also expensive, costing more than $2 billion per year in Canada. Treatments can manage symptoms, but there is no cure, only the slight hope that children will “grow out of it.” 

Dr. Stuart Turvey, his team at the University of British Columbia and the CHILD study team focused on early diagnosis and prevention, two factors that can reduce the personal and economic toll of asthma. Their sample of choice comes from dirty diapers: by using powerful genomics technologies to analyze stools, they were able to predict which infants will go on to develop asthma. The team showed that early life gut bacteria are shaped by breastfeeding and disrupted by antibiotics, and that these changes can affect the risk of asthma. These findings have impacted healthcare policies and are paving the way for future probiotic therapies and personalized screening tools to help keep children healthy. The project also led to international research collaborations, over a dozen high impact publications and national recognition for team leaders. As a result, Canadian families stand to benefit from earlier asthma detection, better prevention and more informed healthcare policies.