Play groups 'help prevent against childhood cancer'

29 Apr 2008

Attending a play group can reduce a child's risk of developing the most common type of childhood leukaemia, according to new research.

The latest analysis from the School of Public Health at the University of California, Berkeley suggests that children who attend play groups or day care are around 30% less likely to develop childhood leukaemia.

Lead researcher and professor of epidemiology Dr Patricia Buffler added: "Combined results for studies of day care attendance specifically before the age of one or two showed a similarly reduced risk."

The findings claim to support the view that children who are exposed to common infections from social contact with other infants at a young age develop a protection against the disease.

According to statistics, leukaemia is the most common cancer diagnosed in children in the industrialised world, affecting approximately one in every 2,000. The disease commonly affects children of pre-school age.

To date no studies have discovered a link between social contact and increased risk of childhood leukaemia.

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