In fact, we have observed previously, in this study population, an increased frequency of theproduction of IL-10 spontaneously among the children living in conditions of poor hygiene and with intestinal helminth infections [7,39]. The induction of regulatory mechanisms, exemplified by elevated production of the immune regulatory cytokine IL-10 by unstimulated cells, has been attributed to living in environments with low hygiene and intense microbial and helminth exposure during childhood – the decline in such exposures in many populations living in affluent countries and the
increase in the prevalence of inflammatory diseases is considered to be a consequence of a failure in microbe/
parasite-induced immune regulation