Effects of early intake of fruit or vegetables in relation to later asthma and allergic sensitization in school-age children

Abstract

The present study suggests that the early introduction of daily fresh fruit or vegetables may decrease the risk of asthma after 1 y of life, whereas allergic sensitization at school age seemed to increase with extra vitamin and cod liver oil supplements during infancy. Living area influenced allergic sensitization, with differences between coastal and inland areas.

Effects of Fruit and Vegetable Consumption on Risk of Asthma, Wheezing and Immune Responses: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Cross-sectional design was most commonly used (Table 1) with 8 case-control studies (Table 2), 13 cohort studies (Table 3) and 7 clinical trials (Table 4). The majority of studies were conducted in UK ( n = 8) [1,18,22,23,24,25,26,27], but also in Australia ( n = 5) [28,29,30,31,32], Greece ( n = 5) [13,33,34,35,36], Spain ( n = 4) [37,38,39,40], Italy ( n = 4) [9,41,42,43], Brazil ( n = 3) [44,45,46], Netherlands ( n = 3) [21,47,48], USA ( n = 3) [9,49,50], Canada ( n = 2) [20,51], Finland ( n = 2) [52,53], India ( n = 2) [54,55], Japan ( n = 2) [56,57], Mexico ( n = 2) [19,58] Sweden ( n = 2) [17,59], Taiwan [60,61] ( n = 2), Albania [62], China [63], Colombia [64], Germany [7], Ireland [65], Norway [66], Portugal [67…”

“…Forty-one studies including nine cohort [21,33,37,41,47,48,53,56,65], six case-control [19,20,44,45,49,68], 22 cross-sectional studies [1,7,9,13,17,26,27,34,35,36,39,40,43,46,50,51,54,61,63,64,66,70], and four experimental trials [24,25,38,60] assessed the effects of fruit and vegetable intake on asthma or asthma-related symptoms in children and adolescents. An inverse association of fruit and vegetable intake and asthma or wheeze was reported in 22 studies [1,9,13,19,21,26,33,35,38,39,41,43,45,49,50,54,60,63,65,66,70,71], while seven studies […”

“…An inverse association of fruit and vegetable intake and asthma or wheeze was reported in 22 studies [1,9,13,19,21,26,33,35,38,39,41,43,45,49,50,54,60,63,65,66,70,71], while seven studies [7,24,27,34,36,53,56] did not observe any significant association. Twelve studies [17,20,37,40,44,46,47,48,51,61,64,68] found mixed results.…”

“…The majority of cross-sectional studies reported beneficial associations of fruit and vegetable intake with lung function (FEV 1 and FVC) [26,50], wheeze [13,35,43,54] and asthma [1,9,39,63,66] as well as with F E NO levels [9] as a marker of eosinophilic airway inflammation. However, some studies did not observe any association between fruit and vegetable intake and asthma in children [7,17,27,36].…”

Evidence for Clinical Safety, Efficacy, and Parent and Physician Perceptions of Levocetirizine for the Treatment of Children with Allergic Disease

“…It has been suggested that the increase in severity and persistence of symptoms of AR may be associated with multiple sensitisation and sustained exposure to traditional indoor allergens such as fungal and mould spores [12,13], as well as with prolonged exposure, due to extended pollen seasons, to perennial tree pollen, food and pet allergens [11]. Similarly, there is evidence that fossil fuel- (kerosene and gas)generated air pollutants in the home [11], indoor cleaning products [14], diet [15,16] and psychological stress [11,17] may increase the risk and/or sensitisation to allergens and contribute to the increasing prevalence of symptoms of AR.…”