Asthma risk from pregnancy nuts
Britain has one of the highest rates of asthma in the world, with about 1.1 million children receiving treatment for the condition. It occurs when the airways to the lungs become inflamed and constricted, making it more difficult to breathe. Over the past 20 years the number of people diagnosed with asthma in the developed world has doubled. The reason is unclear, but scientists believe that extensive use of antibiotics, changes in housing and environmental pollution may all play a role.
Women who eat a lot of nuts during pregnancy may be putting their children at greater risk of asthma, scientists warned yesterday. The finding follows a study of the diets of more than 4,000 expectant mothers and the health of their babies over their first eight years of life. Children diagnosed with asthma or asthma-like symptoms, such as shortness of breath and wheezing, were significantly more likely to be born to mothers who ate nut products, such as peanut butter, each day of their pregnancy, than women who ate nuts only rarely, the scientists found.
The study also showed that moderate amounts did not seem to have an effect, meaning it is too soon to say whether pregnant women should give up nuts because they contain many important nutrients and healthy fats a developing fetus needs, they said.
Asthma is an inflammatory disease causing wheezing, coughing and labored breathing that can be life threatening. In some countries as many as 30 percent of children develop the condition, according to the World Health Organization. Scientists do not exactly know why some children develop asthma, although some believe that allergies can trigger the disease that causes a narrowing of the bronchial tubes. Nuts and seafood are known to contain allergens that cause food allergies but the Dutch team only found a link between peanuts and asthma, Willers said.
comparing women who ate nuts daily during pregnancy to those who ate them “rarely” consistently pointed to an increased risk, with between a 40% and 60% rise in the chances of wheeze, asthma symptoms in general, and use of steroids.
Dr Saskia Willers, from the University of Utrecht, who led the study, said: “While it is too early to make recommendations of avoidance, it is important for pregnant women to eat healthily, and what is true for many foods is that too much is never good.”
The study examined the effect of eating different types of nuts, including peanuts, which botanically are not a true nut. Peanuts have been closely associated with allergy. “Peanut is a potent allergen, and peanut allergy is associated with anaphylactic shock and is less likely to be outgrown than other allergies.”
The research also found lower asthma rates in the children of mothers who ate more fruit during pregnancy. In their study, more than 4,000 pregnant women completed a dietary questionnaire that asked whether they consumed vegetables, fresh fruit, fish, eggs, milk, milk products, nuts and nut products rarely, regularly or daily.
Willers said that it was too early to advise pregnant women to avoid nuts altogether. “They should stick to a healthy diet during pregnancy because that might have lots of benefits for their children, not only to prevent asthma or allergy, but also to reduce their risk of other diseases. Too much of one thing is never a good idea, women should moderate their intake.” The researchers also found a small benefit from eating fruit daily, and reported that the link between asthma and nuts remained after factoring for the child’s diet, Willers added.
Tags: allergens, asthma, bronchial tubes, cause food, food allergies, inflammatory disease, labored breathing, nut products, peanut butter, peanuts, pregnant women, role women, use of antibiotics, world health organization