Is Fast Food Associated with Increasing Asthma Prevalence?

Some evidence suggests correlations between consumption of certain foods and development of allergies and asthma. Diets rich in fruits and vegetables might help prevent asthma symptoms, whereas ingestion of saturated fats and trans fatty acids might contribute to atopic disease. The International Study on Allergies and Asthma in Childhood examined the association between dietary factors and asthma and allergy in 50,004 randomly selected children (age range, 8–12 years) in 20 countries. Parents completed questionnaires on dietary habits and allergic symptoms of their children.

High consumption of fresh fruit, fruit juice, and cooked green vegetables was associated with significantly lower prevalence of wheezing in nonaffluent countries (but n…