Table 4.

Studies of the association between maternal diet and nutrient status in pregnancy and immune markers, asthma, and asthma-related outcomes in childhood

Reference	Cohort and Country	Population	Dietary assessment method	Association
Antioxidant Vitamins and Minerals
Martindale et al102	SEATON, Aberdeen, Scotland	1,374 2-yr old children	Food frequency questionnaire	Maternal vitamin E intakes were negatively associated with wheeze in the absence of a cold; maternal vitamin C intakes were positively associated with ever wheeze
Devereux et al103	SEATON, Aberdeen, Scotland	1,253 5-yr old children; 478 5-yr old children with lung function measures	Food frequency questionnaire; maternal α-tocopherol levels in pregnancy	Maternal intakes of vitamin E and zinc were negatively associated with wheeze and asthma in 5-yr old children; maternal plasma α-tocopherol levels were positively associated with FEV1 in the 5-yr old children
Litonjua et al104	Project Viva, Boston, MA US	1,290 children	Food frequency questionnaire	Maternal intakes of vitamin E and zinc were negatively associated with any wheeze and recurrent wheeze in 2-yr old children
Shaheen et al107	ALSPAC, UK	2,044 children for wheezing analyses; 2,173 children for eczema analyses	Cord blood levels of trace elements and minerals	Cord blood selenium was negatively associated with persistent wheeze up to 42 months of age; cord blood iron was negatively associated with late onset wheeze (wheeze occurring at 30–42 months but not before 6 months) and eczema at 18–30 months
Devereux et al108	SEATON, Aberdeen, Scotland	1282 2-yr old children and 1167 5-yr old children	Maternal and cord blood plasma selenium and erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase	Maternal and cord blood plasma selenium were inversely associated with wheezing in 2-yr old children. However, maternal and cord blood selenium levels were not associated with asthma or wheeze at 5 years. No associations between erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase and wheezing were found
Vitamin D
Devereux, Litonjua et al112	SEATON, Aberdeen, Scotland	1,253 5-yr old children	Food frequency questionnaire	Maternal intakes of vitamin D were negatively associated with ever wheeze, wheeze in the past year, and persistent wheeze in 5-yr old children
Camargo et al111	Project Viva, Boston, MA US	1,194 children	Food frequency questionnaire	Maternal intakes of vitamin D were negatively associated with recurrent wheeze; no association with eczema
Gale et al114	Southampton, UK	440 infants for eczema; 178 for asthma	Maternal 25(OH)D level	Maternal 25(OH)D levels were positively associated with eczema and asthma, although only univariate associations were presented
Fatty acids
Yu et al118	Linköping, Sweden	68 infants (33 babies born to allergic mothers and 35 babies born to non-allergic mothers) followed to 6 years	Cord blood levels of fatty acids	Significant correlations between various n-6 fatty acids and between n-3 and n-6 fatty acids were found in cord blood of children who did not develop allergic disease (allergic dermatitis or asthma) by 6 yrs of age. These correlations were not found in cord blood of children who developed allergic disease by 6 yrs of age
Galli et al119	Rome, Italy	57 infants	Cord blood and infant levels of fatty acids	Lower AA and dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid in cord blood among infants who developed atopy (23 children, 10 eczema + 3 asthma) in the first year of life
Newson et al120	ALSPAC	Wheezing analyses: 1,191 and 2764 infants for cord and maternal analyses, respectively Eczema analyses: 1238 and 2945 infants for cord blood and maternal analyses, respectively	Maternal and cord blood red cell fatty acid measurements	Cord blood ratio of AA:EPA was positively associated with eczema (at 18–30 months), ratio of LA:ALA was positively associated with late-onset wheeze (wheeze occurring at 30–42 months but not before 6 months), and ratio of ALA:n3 was negatively associated with late-onset wheeze. However, after adjustment for multiple testing, these associations were no longer significant. No associations between maternal red cell fatty acids and infant outcomes.
Dunstan et al124	Fish oil supplementation trial, Perth, Australia	80 pregnant women (40 with fish oil supplementation and 43 with olive oil supplementation and their 1-yr old schildren	Clinical trial of fish oil supplementation in 83 atopic pregnant women	Reductions in positive skin tests to allergens, although not statistically significant; nonsignificant reduction in risks for recurrent wheeze and asthma
Foods
Willers et al105	SEATON, Aberdeen, Scotland	1,253 children	Food frequency questionnaire	Maternal intakes of apples were negatively associated with wheeze and asthma; maternal intakes of fish were negatively associated with eczema
Fitzsimon et al	Ireland	631 3-yr old children	FFQ	Maternal intakes of fruits and vegetables were inversely associated with asthma; maternal fat intake increased the risk for asthma

SEATON – Study of Eczema and Asthma To Observe the effects of Nutrition

ALSPAC – Avon Longitudinal Study of Pregnancy and Childhood