The Hindu : Kerala News : Asthma linked to change in food habits Health and Lifestyle

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Asthma linked to change in food habits Health and Lifestyle

Researchers have found that food is one of the most important factors that trigger asthmatic attacks in many.

Increasing number of asthma patients has got pulmonologists and chest physicians believe that it is not just atmospheric pollution that is giving them more patients.

Certainly, there is more to the allergy component that triggers asthmatic attack in children, middle-aged or elderly.

A lot of study has gone into finding the allergens that cause asthma. Researchers have found that food is one of the most important items that trigger asthmatic attacks in many.

With changing lifestyles, food habits have also changed. Eating out of packets and pouches is common now.

Animal products

According to Jacob Baby, chest and allergy specialist, Cooperative Medical College in Kochi, milk and dairy products tend to increase mucus production.

Animal products produce leukotrienes that can cause inflammatory reactions in some people. Raw fruit, vegetables provide enzymes to stimulate digestion and eliminate toxins, he added.

Other foods that are known to trigger an allergic reaction include eggs, shellfish, fish, and nuts. Food colouring agents, especially yellow dye tartrazine, may also cause allergic asthma.

Preservatives

There are preservatives used in salads that may cause asthmatic attack. Monosodium glutamate, used largely in Chinese food preparations, is also considered a trigger as well as an inducer of asthma.

C.G. Bindu, pulmonologist at the General Hospital in Kochi, said that hormones in milk, eggs and chicken are one of the key food items that induce and trigger asthma. The body tries to adjust a lot, she added.

The frequency of asthma today can be like having an asthma patient in every household.

While there are still few studies done here on asthma, researchers abroad have found wheezing problems in children who consume more junk food.

Junk food

Dr. Baby quoted a study relating asthma and junk food done in the Gulf recently. Out of 1,321 children between ages 10 and 12, it was found that the children who ate at least one hamburger a week were 75 per cent more likely to have asthma and 100 per cent more likely to have wheezing problems.

Other take-away foods and soft drinks are also suspected to increase the risk of asthma. Junk food with little nutritional value, high on salt, sugar, fat or calories are potent to trigger asthma in children.

Changing lifestyles

Lifestyles are not just changing the way we eat our food but also the way we live. One of the important trigger factors for asthma is dust and dust mites.

In an upwardly mobile city, dust mites live in sofa sets, coir mattresses, carpets and curtains giving sleepless nights to increasing number of children.

Velvety sofa, ornate wall paintings, rich flowing curtains, satin finish bed spreads and carpeted rooms can all hoard a lot of dust and mites.

Doctors prescribe regular pest control, changing of bed linens at frequent intervals and putting beds in sun.

For those who cannot take do regular cleaning, doctors prescribe minimal furniture and uncarpeted floors. Besides well-aerated and sunlit rooms are a must.

American survey

According to a national asthma survey in the U.S., obesity is linked to asthma and recurrent chest infections.

High pollution level is linked to the onset of asthma in adolescent children. Better lung function in early childhood protects children against a new onset of asthma, said Dr. Baby quoting a study done by an Italian doctor Frank Gillard in in 2007.

Shyama Rajagopal

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