Parental Education Moderates the Relation between Physical Activity, Dietary Patterns and Atopic Diseases in Adolescents
George Antonogeorgos,
Demosthenes B. Panagiotakos,
Kostas N. Priftis,
Evangelia Liakou,
Alexandra Koutsokera,
Pavlos Drakontaeidis,
Marina Thanasia,
Maria Mandrapylia,
Dafni Moriki,
Philippa Ellwood,
Luis García-Marcos,
Konstantinos Douros
Affiliations
George Antonogeorgos
Allergology and Pulmonology Unit, 3rd Paediatric Department, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Demosthenes B. Panagiotakos
Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, School of Health Sciences and Education, Harokopio University, 17676 Athens, Greece
Kostas N. Priftis
Allergology and Pulmonology Unit, 3rd Paediatric Department, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Evangelia Liakou
Allergology and Pulmonology Unit, 3rd Paediatric Department, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Alexandra Koutsokera
Allergology and Pulmonology Unit, 3rd Paediatric Department, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Pavlos Drakontaeidis
Allergology and Pulmonology Unit, 3rd Paediatric Department, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Marina Thanasia
Allergology and Pulmonology Unit, 3rd Paediatric Department, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Maria Mandrapylia
Allergology and Pulmonology Unit, 3rd Paediatric Department, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Dafni Moriki
Allergology and Pulmonology Unit, 3rd Paediatric Department, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Philippa Ellwood
Department of Pediatrics: Child and Youth Health, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand
Luis García-Marcos
Pediatric Allergy and Pulmonology Units, Virgen de la Arrixaca University Children’s Hospital, University of Murcia, Network of Asthma and Adverse and Allergic Reactions (ARADyAL) and Biomedical Research Institute of Murcia, IMIB-Arrixaca, 30394 Murcia, Spain
Konstantinos Douros
Allergology and Pulmonology Unit, 3rd Paediatric Department, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Background: Atopic diseases, particularly asthma, eczema, and rhinitis, are among the most common chronic diseases in childhood, with several factors implicated in their pathogenesis. Our study examined the role of parental education in the association between diet, physical activity, and atopy in adolescents. Methods: 1934 adolescents (47.5% boys) aged 13–14 years old reported information about their diet and physical activity and their parents reported their highest educational level. The moderating role of parental education level (primary/secondary vs. tertiary) in the relation between lifestyle patterns and atopic diseases was examined with logistic regression analyses. Results: High consumption of dairy products was inversely associated to adolescents’ asthma and rhinitis symptoms overall, but this relation was almost 50% stronger for the adolescents with high parental education level background. The same pattern of reduction of the odds was noticed also regarding the association among the high intake of fruits, vegetables, pulses, with all three atopic diseases and the adherence to a physically active lifestyle only with current asthma and eczema (all p < 0.05). Conclusion: Adolescents who are physically active and consume a higher intake of fruits, vegetables, and pulses and a lower intake of fast-food and sweets, and their parents/guardians having higher education, are less likely to have any current symptoms of asthma, eczema, and rhinitis than the ones who have low educated parents.
