Pregnancy: a vitamin E deficiency increases the risk of childhood asthma

A vitamin E deficiency in pregnant women increase the risk of asthma in their children at age 5 years, suggests a paper published in the "Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine British study

Graham Devereux of the University of Aberdeen (UK) and colleagues have shown in a previous study the existence of a link between a reduced intake of vitamin E during pregnancy and the risk of wheezing in the child at the age of 2 years.

British researchers wanted to assess this time the association between intake of vitamin E during pregnancy and the risk of childhood asthma at the age of 5 years, in a population of 1253 mothers and children.

The intake of vitamin E was evaluated in pregnant women with a questionnaire and a measure of the plasma of this nutrient. After 5 years, their children suffered breathing tests (spirometry and blood sampling).

According to their results, maternal intake of vitamin E during pregnancy was negatively associated with risk of asthma at age 5. Children whose mothers consumed the lowest amount of vitamin E during pregnancy showed an increased risk of nearly five times to suffer an early asthma compared to children whose mothers consumed the highest amounts of vitamin E .

"Our data suggest that vitamin E has a dual effect on lung function and airway inflammation," said Graham Devereux in a statement of the American thoracic society on this study and published online.

Foods such as vegetable oils (sunflower, corn and rapeseed), margarine, wheat germ, nuts and sunflower seeds are the main sources of vitamin E for pregnant women in the UK, according to the authors. This vitamin is also present in smaller amounts in butter, liver, eggs, milk, meat, and certain vegetables (cabbage, asparagus, spinach, leeks, carrots, etc ...).

Researchers have also shown that reduced zinc intake during pregnancy is associated with an increased risk of asthma in children at age 5 years.

These results suggest a link between the consumption of vitamin E and zinc in pregnant women and the risk of wheezing and asthma in children, the authors conclude. However, further studies should confirm this association prior to the establishment of specific nutritional recommendations for pregnant women, says Dr. Devereux in the statement.