Children who eat three or more burgers a week are at a higher risk of asthma and wheezing, but a healthy diet rich in fruit and fish seems to stave off the risk.
The increasing prevalence of asthma and allergy might be related to diet. To assess the association between dietary factors, asthma and allergy, researchers from Germany, Spain and Britain studied data on 50,000 children, aged between 8 and 12 years, across the world and took account of their dietary intake and lifestyle.
While diet was not linked to children being more prone to allergies in general, it did seem to influence the prevalence of asthma and wheezing. The link between burgers and asthma was found to be strongest in rich nations where diets with high levels of junk food are more common. A meat-heavy diet itself had no bearing on the prevalence of asthma. Yet, frequent burger eating could be a signal for other lifestyle factors which raise asthma risk.
Overall, more frequent consumption of fruit, vegetables and fish was associated with a lower lifetime prevalence of asthma, whereas high burger consumption was associated with higher lifetime asthma prevalence.
The above findings add to an existing body of evidence showing the health benefits of a so-called Mediterranean diet - rich in fruit, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and fish - including reduced risks of heart disease, diabetes, cancer and depression.
The increasing prevalence of asthma and allergy might be related to diet. To assess the association between dietary factors, asthma and allergy, researchers from Germany, Spain and Britain studied data on 50,000 children, aged between 8 and 12 years, across the world and took account of their dietary intake and lifestyle.
While diet was not linked to children being more prone to allergies in general, it did seem to influence the prevalence of asthma and wheezing. The link between burgers and asthma was found to be strongest in rich nations where diets with high levels of junk food are more common. A meat-heavy diet itself had no bearing on the prevalence of asthma. Yet, frequent burger eating could be a signal for other lifestyle factors which raise asthma risk.
Overall, more frequent consumption of fruit, vegetables and fish was associated with a lower lifetime prevalence of asthma, whereas high burger consumption was associated with higher lifetime asthma prevalence.
The above findings add to an existing body of evidence showing the health benefits of a so-called Mediterranean diet - rich in fruit, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and fish - including reduced risks of heart disease, diabetes, cancer and depression.