In Teens, Too, Diet Affects Asthma
Fruit and fish (often not favorites) may ease symptoms
 (HealthDay News) -- Teens are notoriously poor eaters, often filling up on junk food and soda. But for adolescents with asthma, what they eat may have a big impact on how they feel.
Recent research suggests that fruit containing vitamin C and fish rich in omega-3 fatty acid might lessen asthma symptoms.
"Teens that have the lowest intake of fruits, vitamin C and omega-3 fatty acids tended to have lower pulmonary function and reported more respiratory symptoms than those with higher intake," said Jane Burns, a research fellow at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, who led a study that examined the effect of teens' diets on their respiratory health.
The study showed that "you really are what you eat," Dr. Jane Krasnick, chief of allergy and immunology at St. John Macomb-Oakland Hospital in Warren , Mich. , told HealthDay . "What you put in your body may make a difference. We spend a lot of time worrying about what we inhale and environmental exposures; maybe we should think more about what we're putting into our bodies as well."
The study involved more than 2,000 12th-grade students from a dozen locations across the United States and Canada who provided information about their diet, respiratory symptoms and overall health. The researchers also tested the teens' lung function. Their findings were published in the journal Chest .
Consumption of less than a one-quarter serving of fruit a day was linked to lower than average lung function scores. The researchers found that those with a low intake of vitamin E -- less than 5.2 milligrams daily -- were more likely to have asthma.
Teens who smoked were more likely to develop chronic bronchitis or acute bronchitis if they averaged less than 85 milligrams of daily vitamin C, compared with those who consumed the most vitamin C.
For adolescents who averaged less than 22 milligrams of omega-3 fatty acids daily, the risk of asthma was almost 70 percent higher. The odds of chronic bronchitis and wheezing were increased for those with low omega-3 intake as well.
"This is a time in their lives when they should all have good lung function, and they may not be obtaining optimal lung function," Burns said. "This may affect their lung function later in life."
Studies on adults have also suggested that what you eat may affect your asthma symptoms, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. Apples and selenium-rich foodstuffs have been shown to have a potentially protective effect in people with asthma, the center reported. Additionally, red wine seems to lessen the severity of asthma attacks in people who don't have allergies to any components of red wine, such as sulfites.
Burns thinks that healthy foods might reduce inflammation and combat oxidative stress because healthy foods are full of antioxidants.
"Asthma is a physical state where there's a lot of oxidative stress, and a high intake of antioxidants may make the lung cells less responsive to oxidative stress," she explained.
On the Web
To learn more about nutrition and asthma, visit the National Jewish Health Medical and Research Center.
SOURCES:
HealthDay News ; Jane Burns, Sc.D., research fellow, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston; Jane Krasnick, M.D., chief of allergy and immunology, St. John Macomb-Oakland Hospital, Warren, Mich.; July 2007, Chest ; University of Maryland Medical Center (www.umm.edu)
Author:
Serena Gordon
Publication Date:
July 31, 2008
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