PARSIFAL study
Encyclopedia
PARSIFAL was a 2006 multicenter study, conducted in five European countries, comparing the incidence of atopic disease
Atopy
Atopy or atopic syndrome is a predisposition toward developing certain allergic hypersensitivity reactions.Atopy may have a hereditary component, although contact with the allergen must occur before the hypersensitivity reaction can develop ....

 in children attending Steiner (Waldorf) schools with that in children attending other schools. The main objectives of the PARSIFAL study were 1) to investigate whether the previously observed reduced prevalences of atopic disease in children attending Waldorf schools could be confirmed in a large population of children from 5 European countries and 2) to explore commonly found factors in families with anthroposophic
Anthroposophy
Anthroposophy, a philosophy founded by Rudolf Steiner, postulates the existence of an objective, intellectually comprehensible spiritual world accessible to direct experience through inner development...

 lifestyles which might explain the lower prevalence of such diseases in these children.

Specific lifestyle factors studied in the families included: restrictive use of antibiotics, limited vaccinations, and a diet containing live lactobacilli, which may affect the intestinal microflora. "Anthroposophical doctors
Anthroposophical Medicine
Anthroposophical medicine is a complementary approach to medicine that integrates the theories and practices of modern medicine with homeopathic medicines, physical and artistic therapies and biographical counseling...

 restrict the use of antibiotics, antipyretics, and vaccinations. Most children are vaccinated only against tetanus and polio, and most vaccinations are given later than recommended by the Swedish health authorities. As a result, in Sweden, measles occurs primarily in anthroposophic families. They also consume mostly local foods produced according to biodynamic principles
Biodynamic agriculture
Biodynamic agriculture is a method of organic farming that emphasizes the holistic development and interrelationships of the soil, plants and animals as a self-sustaining system. Biodynamic farming has much in common with other organic approaches, such as emphasizing the use of manures and composts...

. Vegetables preserved by spontaneous fermentation are a common dietary element, even for small children."

The study was carried out on the response to questionnaires for 6,630 children (4,606 Steiner school children and 2,024 reference children) and blood samples for 28% of all included children. Allergen
Allergen
An allergen is any substance that can cause an allergy. In technical terms, an allergen is a non-parasitic antigen capable of stimulating a type-I hypersensitivity reaction in atopic individuals....

-specific IgE
IGE
IGE was one of the largest services company buying and selling virtual currencies and accounts for MMORPG. During its peak time, it had offices in Los Angeles, China , and headquarters & customer service centre in Hong Kong. IGE was one of the main monopoly in virtual economy services, also known...

 antibody levels were measured against a mixture of common inhalant and food allergens. Antibiotic
Antibiotic
An antibacterial is a compound or substance that kills or slows down the growth of bacteria.The term is often used synonymously with the term antibiotic; today, however, with increased knowledge of the causative agents of various infectious diseases, antibiotic has come to denote a broader range of...

s and antipyretic
Antipyretic
Antipyretics ; an-tee-pahy-ret-iks; from the Greek anti, against, and pyreticus, are drugs or herbs that reduce fever. Normally, they will not lower body temperature if one does not have a fever. Antipyretics cause the hypothalamus to override an interleukin-induced increase in temperature...

s were used less often in the Steiner school children, whereas a diet mainly based on biodynamic food
Biodynamic agriculture
Biodynamic agriculture is a method of organic farming that emphasizes the holistic development and interrelationships of the soil, plants and animals as a self-sustaining system. Biodynamic farming has much in common with other organic approaches, such as emphasizing the use of manures and composts...

 was found almost exclusively in the Steiner school children group. MMR vaccination
MMR vaccine
The MMR vaccine is an immunization shot against measles, mumps, and rubella . It was first developed by Maurice Hilleman while at Merck in the late 1960s....

 was about three times less common than in the reference group, and the prevalence of measles
Measles
Measles, also known as rubeola or morbilli, is an infection of the respiratory system caused by a virus, specifically a paramyxovirus of the genus Morbillivirus. Morbilliviruses, like other paramyxoviruses, are enveloped, single-stranded, negative-sense RNA viruses...

 infection was three times greater than in the reference group. In addition to the findings of the earlier Lancet paper, the PARSIFAL study reported lower incidence of rhinoconjunctivitis (a combination of rhinitis
Rhinitis
Rhinitis , commonly known as a stuffy nose, is the medical term describing irritation and inflammation of some internal areas of the nose. The primary symptom of rhinitis is nasal dripping. It is caused by chronic or acute inflammation of the mucous membrane of the nose due to viruses, bacteria or...

 and conjunctivitis
Conjunctivitis
Conjunctivitis refers to inflammation of the conjunctiva...

) and atopic sensitization. Focusing on doctor-diagnosed disease, the use of antibiotics during the first year of life was associated with increased risks of rhinoconjunctivitis, asthma and atopic eczema. Early use of antipyretics was related to an increased risk of asthma and atopic eczema. Children having received MMR vaccination showed an increased risk of rhinoconjunctivitis, whereas measles infection was associated with a lower risk of eczema related to IgE antibodies.

The authors concluded that "certain features of the anthroposophic lifestyle, such as restrictive use of antibiotics and antipyretics, are associated with a reduced risk of allergic disease in children."
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