Dietary intake in adolescents with asthma--potential for improvement.

Associations between an unhealthy diet and overweight and the presence of asthma are reported. The aims of this study were to assess whether the intake of nutrients and food items in adolescents with asthma differs from that of healthy adolescents, whether the intake was in accordance with the Nordic Nutrition Recommendations (NNR) or whether possible relationships were confounded by body composition. A four-day-validated 18-page pre-coded food diary was completed by 169 13- to 14-year-old adolescents, 93 with asthma and 76 healthy control subjects, in addition to clinical assessment, anthropometric measurements, lung function and skin prick tests. Neither intake of added sugar, snacks nor saturated fat was associated with asthma. All groups had an intake of saturated fat and added sugars exceeding the NNR, while the intake of fruits and vegetables, fibre and vitamin D was lower than recommended. The intake of folate, calcium, magnesium and iron was lower than recommended for girls with asthma and healthy girls. The intake of vitamin C was satisfactory for all groups. Body composition did not influence eating habits, and the prevalence of overweight was similar in the two groups. The dietary intake among Norwegian adolescents in general had a potential for improvement. As girls have a lower energy intake than boys, they have a larger demand of quality of the diet. Additional dietary research in adolescents with asthma is recommended.

[Growth and dietary intake among children with previous cow's milk allergy]. / Vekstutvikling og kosthold hos barn som har hatt kumelkallergi.

BACKGROUND: Approximately 2-3% of children develop allergy or intolerance to cow's milk and many of them go on a milk-free diet for a long time. Few studies have been done on growth and dietary intake among these children. MATERIAL AND METHODS: 28 children aged 6-10 who had recovered from cow's milk allergy, divided into groups "low-milk" and "ad lib milk", were compared with a control group of 32 children of same age. Growth rates from age one and dietary intake at present age based on four days weighed dietary assessment were used. RESULTS: Among the allergic children at ages 6-10, 50% had developed tolerance to cow's milk protein, while 35% used some dairy products. A totally milk-free diet was kept by 15%; these children were excluded from the study. The children with allergy had low body weight and height at ages one, two and four and at the present age compared with the controls. The energy intake was the same in both groups. The total sample had higher intake of sugar and lower intake of vitamin D than the recommended values. The 35% of children with restricted intake of cow's milk had lower intake of calcium, riboflavin and protein. The 50% of children with ad lib intake of milk products had a diet that differed little from that of the non-allergic children. INTERPRETATION: There is a need for further studies on growth, dietary intake and development of tolerance that could give health workers better knowledge for dealing with this group of children.