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Derma Update : Relationship between infant allergic disease and maternal fiber dietary intakes during pregnancy

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eMediNexus    30 May 2020

Family history is a strong predictor of allergic disease but changes in the early environment are involved in the increase of early-onset allergic disease. The most particularly noted is maternal diet and lifestyle during pregnancy. During pregnancy, maternal diet plays a role in infant immune development via both direct nutrient specific immunomodulatory effects and also by modulating the metabolic activity and composition of the maternal gut microbiome.

Traditional dietary patterns during pregnancy are rich in fish, fruit and vegetables, and particular nutrients such as fiber, omega-3 fatty acids, and zinc, selenium and antioxidant vitamins. They have been associated with reduced risk of allergic disease in offspring. Dietary fibers are the major substrates for microbial fermentation. The study was done to examine the maternal intakes of different fiber sub-types and following infant allergic disease. An observational study of 639 mother-infant pairs with all infants having a family history of allergic disease was done. Maternal intakes of total fiber, soluble fiber, resistant starch, insoluble fiber and prebiotic fiber, were assessed by a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire at 36-40 weeks gestation.

Infants joined an allergy clinical evaluation at 12 months of age, which included skin prick testing to common allergens. Higher maternal dietary consumptions of resistant starch were associated with reduction in doctor diagnosed infant wheeze. But, in contrast, higher maternal consumptions of resistant starch were associated with greater risk of parent reported eczema and doctor diagnosed eczema. The study concluded that maternal resistant starch consumption was differentially related with infant phenotypes, with lower risk of infant wheeze, but higher risk of eczema.

Source: Pretorius RA, Bodinier M, Prescott SL, Palmer DJ. Maternal Fiber Dietary Intakes during Pregnancy and Infant Allergic Disease. Nutrients. 2019; 11(8):1767. Published 2019 Aug 1. doi:10.3390/nu11081767

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