Sleeping on animal fur in infancy might reduce the risk of asthma in later childhood, according to a recent study.

Researchers found that exposure to the microbial environment in animal skin and fur in the first three months of life could have a protective effect against asthma and allergies. Previous studies have suggested that exposure to a wider range of environments from a young age could be protective against asthma and allergies.

"Previous studies have suggested that microbes found in rural settings can protect from asthma. An animal skin might also be a reservoir for various kinds of microbes, following similar mechanisms as has been observed in rural environment," researcher Christina Tischer said in a statement. "Our findings have confirmed that it is crucial to study further the actual microbial environment within the animal fur to confirm these associations."

For the study, the research team investigated children from a city environment who had been exposed to animal skin by sleeping on the material shortly after birth. To do this they analyzed data from a German birth cohort called Lisaplus.

They collected information on exposure to animal skin during the first three months of life, along with information on the health of children until the age of 10 years. Information on more than 2,000 children was used in the study.

Researchers found that sleeping on animal skin was associated with a reduced risk of a number of factors connected to asthma. The chance of having asthma at the age of six years was 79 percent lower in children who had slept on animal skin after birth compared with those who were not exposed to animal skin. The risk decreased to 41 percent by the age of 10.

The findings were presented at the European Respiratory Society International Congress in Munich.