Nut Diet during pregnancy increases asthma in the baby
Consuming nuts during pregnancy may increase the risk of developing childhood asthma among newborns.
To investigate the influence of mother’s food consumption during pregnancy on childhood asthma outcomes from 1 to 8 years of age, researchers in America followed 4,146 pregnant women (1,327 with a history of allergy or asthma and 2,819 with no such history). These women were asked about their frequency of consumption of fruit, vegetables, fish, egg, milk, milk products, nuts, and nut products during the last month of pregnancy. Their children were followed until 8 years of age.
It was found that daily consumption of nut products increased the risk of wheezing in a child by 42 percent, shortness of breath by 58 percent and steroid use to ease asthma symptoms by 62 percent, compared to children born to mothers who rarely consumed nuts. Overall, the odds of developing asthma symptoms for a child whose mother ate nuts daily were 47 percent higher. No association was found between vegetable, milk, and fish consumption during pregnancy and risk of childhood asthma.
The findings caution pregnant women to reduce nut consumption during pregnancy, specially those women who have a family history of food allergy. However, further studies need to be done before dietary advice can be given to pregnant women.
American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine