Parental Education and the Association between Fruit and Vegetable Consumption and Asthma in Adolescents: The Greek Global Asthma Network (GAN) Study
George Antonogeorgos,
Kostas N. Priftis,
Demosthenes B. Panagiotakos,
Philippa Ellwood,
Luis García-Marcos,
Evangelia Liakou,
Alexandra Koutsokera,
Pavlos Drakontaeidis,
Marina Thanasia,
Maria Mandrapylia,
Konstantinos Douros
Affiliations
George Antonogeorgos
Allergology and Pulmonology Unit, 3rd Paediatric Department, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Kostas N. Priftis
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
Philippa Ellwood
Department of Pediatrics: Child and Youth Health, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, 1023 Auckland, 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
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
Konstantinos Douros
Allergology and Pulmonology Unit, 3rd Paediatric Department, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Background: Evidence suggests that nutritional factors, such as consumption of fruits and vegetables, along with socioeconomic factors such as parental education level, are associated with asthma prevalence. Our study examined the role of parental education in the association between fruit and vegetable consumption and adolescent asthma. Methods: 1934 adolescents (mean age: 12.7 years, standard deviation: 0.6 years, boys: 47.5%) and their parents were voluntarily enrolled and completed a validated questionnaire assessing current asthma status, fruit and vegetable consumption and parental educational level. Participants were categorized as high or low intake for five food groups: fruits, cooked vegetables, raw vegetables, all vegetables (cooked and raw), and all three food groups together (fruits and all vegetables). Results: Adolescents who were high consumers of all three food groups (fruits, cooked and raw vegetables) were less likely to have asthma, adjusted for several confounders (adjusted odds ratio (aOR): 0.53, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.25–0.97). Moreover, in adolescents who had parents with tertiary education and were in the high consumption of all three food groups, the inverse association was almost twofold higher than the one for adolescents with parents of primary/secondary education (aOR: 0.35, 95% CI: (0.21–0.89) and aOR: 0.61, 95% CI: (0.47–0.93) respectively). Conclusions: Our findings highlight the importance of the adoption of a diet rich in fruits and vegetables for all asthmatic adolescents and emphasize the important role of parental influences in this association.
