Disconnection of man and the soil: Reason for the asthma and atopy epidemic?

Hertzen, Leena von; Haahtela, Tari

doi:10.1016/j.jaci.2005.11.013

Cited by 113 publications

(109 citation statements)

References 113 publications

(150 reference statements)

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“…4 Furthermore, use of modern fuels, low exposure to microorganisms in soil and vegetation, and an increased hygiene score have been reported to be associated with an increased prevalence of allergic diseases. [30][31][32] Another explanation may be the presence of high humidity, which can increase sweating and in turn exacerbate AD symptoms.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence of Atopic Dermatitis in Korean Children Based on Data From the 2008-2011 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

Lee

Han

Kim

et al. 2016

Allergy Asthma Immunol Res

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This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.Population-based studies of atopic dermatitis (AD) in Korean children are lacking. Thus, the purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence, geographic distribution, and risk factors of AD in the Korean pediatric population. We examined AD prevalence using data from the 2008-2011 Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES), which was a cross-sectional survey of 8,947 children up to age 18 throughout the country. Overall, 13.50% of children reported a diagnosis of AD. The age-standardized prevalence ranged from 9.13% to 17.67% between cities and provinces, with the highest prevalence -observed in many of the larger cities at low latitudes, as well as Jeju-do. After adjusting for confounders, high economic status was found to be a significant factor for predicting increased prevalence of AD, with an odds ratio of 1.35 (95% confidence interval of 1.02-1.79, P=0.0034). Urban living (odds ratio 1.24, 95% confidence interval of 1.00-1.53, P=0.0526) was also associated with a higher prevalence of AD. In this first large scale, nationwide study in Korean children, we found that the overall prevalence of AD depends on age, household income, and geographic distribution.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence of Atopic Dermatitis in Korean Children Based on Data From the 2008-2011 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

Lee

Han

Kim

et al. 2016

Allergy Asthma Immunol Res

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“…For example, the traditional Mediterranean lifestyle is also linked with small-scale farming of fruits, vegetables and vine. Reduced exposure to soil microbiota in urban environment has been coined as a major facilitator of the Ôallergy epidemicÕ (29) and the consumption of self-produced vegetables has given protection against atopic conditions (30). Adherence to Mediterranean diet may thus reflect greater exposure to immunomodulating soil saphrophytes giving protection against severe asthma.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adherence to the Mediterranean diet and fresh fruit intake are associated with improved asthma control

Barros

Moreira

Fonseca

et al. 2008

Allergy

126

104

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Background: The traditional Mediterranean diet is claimed to possess antioxidant and immune‐regulatory properties in several chronic diseases. Typical Mediterranean foods have recently been associated with improvement of symptoms of asthma and rhinitis in children. However the effect of adherence to Mediterranean diet on adult asthma outcomes is unknown. We aimed to investigate the association between adherence to Mediterranean diet and asthma control.Methods: Cross sectional study of 174 asthmatics, mean (SD) age of 40 (15) years. The patients were defined as controlled, in contrast to noncontrolled, if they showed FEV1 ≥ 80% of predicted, exhaled nitric oxide (NO) ≤35 ppb, and Asthma Control Questionnaire score <1. Dietary intake was obtained by a food frequency questionnaire, and Mediterranean diet was assessed by alternate Mediterranean Diet (aMED) Score. Logistic regression models adjusting for confounders were performed to estimate the association between Mediterranean diet and asthma control.Results: Controlled asthmatics (23%) had significantly higher aMED Score, intake of fresh fruit, and lower intake of ethanol compared to noncontrolled (77%). High adherence to Mediterranean diet reduced 78% the risk of noncontrolled asthma after adjusting for gender, age, education, inhaled corticosteroids and energy intake (OR = 0.22; 95% CI = 0.05–0.85; P‐trend = 0.028). The higher intake of fresh fruit decreased the probability of having noncontrolled asthma (OR = 0.29; 95% CI = 0.10–0.83; P‐trend = 0.015), while the higher intake of ethanol had the opposite effect (OR = 3.16; 95% CI = 1.10–9.11; P‐trend = 0.035).Conclusion: High adherence to traditional Mediterranean diet increased the likelihood of asthma to be under control in adults. The study introduces a novel link between diet and asthma control, as measured by symptoms, lung function and exhaled NO.

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“…Factors responsible for the increased asthma incidence are not fully understood, but environmental and lifestyle changes play a major role (11)(12)(13)(14). The highest prevalences of asthma are in the developed world, with a few exceptions.…”

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confidence: 99%

Reduction of asthma burden is possible through National Asthma Plans

Kupczyk

Haahtela

Cruz

et al. 2010

Allergy

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To cite this article: Kupczyk M, Haahtela T, Cruz AA, Kuna P. Reduction of asthma burden is possible through National Asthma. Allergy 2010; 65: 415–419.AbstractDespite increase in understanding of asthma patomechanisms the practical actions to lessen asthma burden in the communities are far behind of scientific knowledge. There are still reports of uderdiagnosis and poor treatment leading to repeated severe exacerbations, often demanding emergency care and hospitalisation, which cause most of the economic burden both for families and society. From the public health perspective, the key issue is to implement the best standards of care in every‐day practice. The problems are different in high income compared to low‐ and middle‐income countries, and the solutions have to be tailored to each country needs and resources. We present here examples from Finland, Poland and Brazil, to show that asthma burden can be reduced using varied strategies in quite different societal, economical and health care environments. The experience from those interventions confirms that regardless of the health care system and its coverage, a major change for the better can be achieved by local efforts, systematic planning and networking to implement the best asthma practice.

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Disconnection of man and the soil: Reason for the asthma and atopy epidemic?

Cited by 113 publications

References 113 publications

Prevalence of Atopic Dermatitis in Korean Children Based on Data From the 2008-2011 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

Prevalence of Atopic Dermatitis in Korean Children Based on Data From the 2008-2011 Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

Adherence to the Mediterranean diet and fresh fruit intake are associated with improved asthma control

Reduction of asthma burden is possible through National Asthma Plans

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