Association between biomarker-quantified antioxidant status during pregnancy and infancy and allergic disease during early childhood: A systematic review

Abstract

Recent findings suggest a significant association between the antioxidant status of pregnant women and of their children during the first years of life and the development of allergic disease during childhood. The aim of this review was to identify all studies that estimated the effect of intake of antioxidants in pregnant women and their children on the development of allergic disease during early childhood. A systematic review was conducted of epidemiological studies featuring original peer-reviewed data on the association between dietary antioxidant status and allergic disease during childhood. A systematic search was performed following the Meta-analysis of Observational Studies in Epidemiology Guidelines. A comprehensive search of the literature yielded 225 studies, 18 of which were selected for the extraction of results and were related to antioxidant status and allergic disease. The systematic review included five prospective cohort studies, four cross-sectional studies, and nine case-control studies. Eight studies reported an important association between antioxidant status and asthma onset during childhood. Similarly, wheezing and eczema were studied as an outcome in six and in five studies, respectively. Recent observational studies suggest that a higher intake of antioxidant vitamins, zinc, and selenium during pregnancy and childhood reduces the likelihood of childhood asthma, wheezing, and eczema.

Prenatal retinoid deficiency leads to airway hyperresponsiveness in adult mice

“…There is increasing evidence of an association between VAD and airway hyperresponsiveness, defined as an exaggerated contraction of the bronchial smooth muscle (SM) in response to environmental or pharmacological stimuli (11)(12)(13)(14). These studies have also shown that maternal VAD has a negative impact on postnatal lung function in children, which can be alleviated by proper supplementation during gestation (15,16).…”

Preventing disease in the 21st century: The importance of maternal and early infant diet and nutrition

“…The consumption of peanuts and tree nuts also provides an important source of specific immunomodulatory nutrients that have been independently associated with allergic risk, including polyunsaturated fatty acids, selenium, zinc, folate, vitamin E, and other antioxidants. [5][6][7] It is also possible that the dietary patterns associated with higher nut consumption could also be associated with higher consumption of vegetables, fruits, and legumes. For example, dietary patterns, such as a Mediterranean diet during pregnancy, have been associated with protection against childhood asthma and wheeze, 6 in particular higher consumption of vegetables, legumes, and fish.…”

Freeze-Dried Targeted Mannosylated Selenium-Loaded Nanoliposomes: Development and Evaluation

“…However, some of the studies were not able to establish the role of selenium (15,16). Nonetheless, epidemiological studies suggest that Se has beneficial immunomodulatory properties and Se supplementation may reduce allergic asthma (17)(18)(19)(20)(21). In our previous studies, oral Se supplementation was found to change immune responses from Th2-type to Th1/T reg -types, which modulates levels of asthma in mice (22,23).…”