London, May 27 (Reuters): Pollution from heavy traffic can make children more susceptible to asthma, wheezing and coughs, scientists said today.

Teams of researchers from Taiwan and Germany have shown that chemicals in vehicle exhausts lead to an increased risk of respiratory disorders in children living in heavy traffic areas.

“Our results support the increasingly popular hypothesis that exposure to traffic pollution modifies children’s susceptibility to allergens,” said Yueliang Leon Guo of the National Cheng Kung University in Taiwan.