Risk for Behavioral Problems Elevated for Children With Allergic Rhinitis

MONDAY, Sept. 29, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Children with allergic rhinitis (AR) have an increased risk for behavioral problems (BPs), which is partly mediated by sleep disturbance (SD), according to a study published online Sept. 14 in the Annals of Medicine.

Shiyin Yang, from the Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, and colleagues recruited 18,316 children aged 6 to 12 years from 34 primary schools in China. The association between self-reported AR and BPs was examined in logistic regression models with adjustment.

The researchers found that the prevalence of AR was 32.9 percent, SD was 23.3 percent, and any BP was 18.0 percent. Children with ARs had significantly higher adjusted odds ratios for BPs than those without; the odds ratios were 1.77, 1.67, 1.82, 1.68, 1.36, and 1.67 for conduct problems, learning problems, psychosomatic problems, impulsive-hyperactivity, anxiety, and hyperactivity, respectively. SD mediated the association between AR and BPs in a mediation analysis, with the proportion of mediation varying from 32.6 to 64.1 percent; daytime sleepiness and sleep-disordered breathing contributed the most.

“This community study provides evidence supporting significant associations between AR with BPs in urban children aged 6 to 12 years old,” the authors write. “Results showed that over one-third of these associations are mediated by SD, among which daytime sleepiness and sleep-disordered breathing contributed most.”

Abstract/Full Text