Study links asthma to fast food

Children who eat fast food three or more times a week have a higher chance of developing asthma, eczema or hay fever, a New Zealand-led study has found.

Children who eat fast food three or more times a week have a higher chance of developing asthma, eczema or hay fever, a New Zealand-led study has found.

Published Feb 8, 2013

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Children who eat fast food three or more times a week have a higher chance of developing asthma, eczema or hay fever, a New Zealand-led study has found.

Eating fresh fruit, in contrast, can act as a protective factor against these allergy-based conditions.

The study, published in the Thorax journal, surveyed more than 400 000 children from 51 countries.

It found that teenagers who ate fast food three or more times a week had a 39 percent increased risk of severe asthma, while primary school-aged children had a 27 percent higher risk.

However, eating three or more servings of fruit a week could cut the chance of severe asthma, eczema and hay fever by between 11 and 14 percent across the age groups.

The University of Auckland’s Professor Innes Asher, who led the study, said parents should sit up and take notice of the findings.

“These results are quite concerning, because fast food outlets are on the rise,” Asher said. “The bottom line is that people should be careful about the amount of fast food they eat.”

Though the exact reason why consumption of fast food is linked to these conditions is unknown, Asher cites factors such as high levels of trans- and saturated- fatty acids as possible contenders. These fats are known to affect immunity, which could in turn lead to allergy-related conditions.

Eating fresh fruit provides protection against these conditions because it contains beneficial antioxidants, she said.

The study indicates an association between the factors, rather than establishing a causal link. – New Zealand Herald

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