title: Association of serum carotenoids and tocopherols with atopic diseases in Japanese children and adolescents.
abstract: The present study assessed whether serum carotenoids and tocopherols are associated with atopic diseases (eczema and asthma) in 10- and 13-yr-olds in a Japanese community. Of 2796 students attending schools in Shunan, Japan, in 2006, 396 students were randomly selected for this study using nested case-control design. Atopic diseases and dietary food intake were assessed using self-administered questionnaires, and serum antioxidants were analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography. We found no associations between serum carotenoids and atopic diseases. However, odds ratios (OR)s for the third and fourth quartiles of serum alpha-tocopherol with atopic eczema were 0.33 (95% confidence interval: 0.15-0.73) and 0.36 (0.14-0.89), respectively, and the trend was negatively significant (P(trend) = 0.048). We did not find a significant association for asthma. In conclusion, serum alpha-tocopherol was negatively associated with the prevalence of eczema. Serum carotenoids did not show definitive protective effects in Japanese youth.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Safety, Graduate School of Science and Technology, Yamaguchi University, Ube, Japan. okuda@yamaguchi-u.ac.jp
authors.forename: Masayuki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Okuda
authors.forename: Noriko
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bando
authors.forename: Junji
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Terao
authors.forename: Satoshi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sasaki
authors.forename: Shinichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sugiyama
authors.forename: Ichiro
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Kunitsugu
authors.forename: Tatsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hobara
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001249:Asthma / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D002338:Carotenoids / Q000097:blood; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D003876:Dermatitis, Atopic / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D004435:Eating; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D024505:Tocopherols / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D002338:Carotenoids; D024505:Tocopherols