Mediterranean Diet Reduces Hay Fever Risk For Children

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Main Category: Allergy
Also Included In: Respiratory / Asthma;  Pediatrics / Children's Health;  Nutrition / Diet
Article Date: 06 Apr 2007 - 9:00 PST

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If you want to lower your child's risk of having hay fever you should seriously consider giving him/her a Mediterranean diet, say researchers. Scientists found that children who followed a Mediterranean diet had a 30% lower risk of developing hay fever. It seems, say the researchers, that the diet is not only good for adults, but also for kids.

The researchers found that children who eat a normal Mediterranean diet were 30% less likely to develop hay fever, while those who also consumed very large quantities of fruit while on the Mediterranean diet were over 60% less likely to develop hay fever.

Previous studies have indicated that the Mediterranean diet may reduce your chances of developing diabetes type 2, hypertension (high blood pressure), heart disease and several cancers.

In this study the researchers looked at 690 schoolchildren in Crete, Greece - they were aged 1-18 years. Their parents filled in questionnaires about their kids eating habits and allergic conditions. All the children were tested for the ten most common allergy causes. About 30% of children have allergies, of which half should have symptoms. However, in Crete 30% did have allergies but virtually none of them exhibited symptoms, such as asthma, runny nose and itchy eyes. This anomaly is virtually unheard of, said Paul Cullinan, U.K. National Heart and Lung Institute, one of the authors of the study.

Nearly all the children in the study ate fresh tomatoes and several types of fruit at least weekly, while over half of them consumed them daily. Most of the children ate nuts regularly.

Protective effect of fruits, vegetables and the Mediterranean diet on asthma and allergies among children in Crete
Leda Chatzi , Gianna Apostolaki , Ioannis Bibakis , Isobel Skypala , Vasiliki Bibaki-Liakou , Tzanakis Tzanakis , Manolis Kogevinas and Paul Cullinan
Thorax. Published Online First: 5 April 2007. doi:10.1136/thx.2006.069419
© 2007 by BMJ Publishing Group Ltd & British Thoracic Society
Click here to view ABSTRACT online

Written by: Christian Nordqvist
Editor: Medical News Today
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today

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