Certain Diets May Increase Inflammation, Allergies

Certain Diets May Increase Inflammation, Allergies

The incidence of asthma has been on the rise in the United States for the past decade, and recent research – conducted outside of America – may shed a little light on the rising trend.

The study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, compared children from a rural African village whose diets were rich in natural sources of fiber and fatty acids to children living in Florence, Italy. The Italian children ate higher quantities of meat, fat and sugar.

Researchers found that the African children had less obesity-linked bacteria and a greater abundance of fatty acids which protect against inflammation causing asthma, eczema and other allergic reactions.

They also found that Italian children who were still breast-feeding harbored beneficial bacteria resembling the African children’s, indicating diet may dominate other factors such as ethnicity, sanitation, geography or climate, say the researchers.

Pediatrician Dr Paolo Lionetti, of Florence University, and colleagues said children in industrialized countries (like America) who eat low-fiber, high-sugar ‘Western’ diets may reduce microbial richnes, potentially contributing to a rise in allergic and inflammatory diseases in the last half-century.

A rise in new diseases such as allergic, autoimmune disorders, and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) both in adults and in children has been observed in industrialized countries, noted the researchers, and it is hypothesized that improvements in hygiene together with decreased microbial exposure in childhood are considered responsible for this increase.

“The gastrointestinal microflora plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis of IBD and recent studies demonstrate obesity is associated with imbalance in the normal gut microbiota.”