Is fruit and vegetable intake associated with asthma or chronic rhino-sinusitis in European adults? Results from the Global Allergy and Asthma Network of Excellence (GA2LEN) Survey.
BACKGROUND
Fruits and vegetables are rich in compounds with proposed antioxidant, anti-allergic and anti-inflammatory properties, which could contribute to reduce the prevalence of asthma and allergic diseases.


OBJECTIVE
We investigated the association between asthma, and chronic rhino-sinusitis (CRS) with intake of fruits and vegetables in European adults.


METHODS
A stratified random sample was drawn from the Global Allergy and Asthma Network of Excellence (GA2LEN) screening survey, in which 55,000 adults aged 15-75 answered a questionnaire on respiratory symptoms. Asthma score (derived from self-reported asthma symptoms) and CRS were the outcomes of interest. Dietary intake of 22 subgroups of fruits and vegetables was ascertained using the internationally validated GA2LEN Food Frequency Questionnaire. Adjusted associations were examined with negative binomial and multiple regressions. Simes procedure was used to control for multiple testing.


RESULTS
A total of 3206 individuals had valid data on asthma and dietary exposures of interest. 22.8% reported having at least 1 asthma symptom (asthma score ≥1), whilst 19.5% had CRS. After adjustment for potential confounders, asthma score was negatively associated with intake of dried fruits (β-coefficient -2.34; 95% confidence interval [CI] -4.09, -0.59), whilst CRS was statistically negatively associated with total intake of fruits (OR 0.73; 95% CI 0.55, 0.97). Conversely, a positive association was observed between asthma score andalliumsvegetables (adjusted β-coefficient 0.23; 95% CI 0.06, 0.40). None of these associations remained statistically significant after controlling for multiple testing.


CONCLUSIONS
There was no consistent evidence for an association of asthma or CRS with fruit and vegetable intake in this representative sample of European adults.
Population Health and Occupational Medicine Group, National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, UK.|Respiratory Epidemiology, Occupational Medicine and Public Health Group, National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, Emmanuel Kaye Building, Manresa Road, London, SW3 6LR UK.
Vanessa
0000-0003-2713-6584
V
Garcia-Larsen
Department of Nutrition, King's College London, London, UK.
Rhonda
R
Arthur
Population Health and Occupational Medicine Group, National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, UK.
James F
JF
Potts
Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, London, UK.
Peter H
PH
Howarth
Skin and Allergy Hospital, Helsinki University Hospital, Southampton, Finland.
Matti
M
Ahlström
Skin and Allergy Hospital, Helsinki University Hospital, Southampton, Finland.
Tari
T
Haahtela
Immuno-allergology Department, Coimbra University Hospital, Helsinki, Portugal.
Carlos
C
Loureiro
Immuno-allergology Department, Coimbra University Hospital, Helsinki, Portugal.
Ana Todo
AT
Bom
Department of Epidemiology, College of Medicine, Medical University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland.
Grzegorz
G
Brożek
Department of Immunology, Rheumatology and Allergy, Medical University of Lodz, Coimbra, Poland.
Joanna
J
Makowska
Department of Immunology, Rheumatology and Allergy, Medical University of Lodz, Coimbra, Poland.
Marek L
ML
Kowalski
Research Unit for Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Institute of Clinical Research, University of Southern Denmark, Coimbra, Denmark.
Trine
T
Thilsing
Institute of Social Medicine, Epidemiology and Health Economics, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Lodz, Germany.|Institute of Clinical Epidemiology and Biometry, Würzburg University, Würzburg, Germany.
Thomas
T
Keil
Deptartment of Pediatrics, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
Paolo M
PM
Matricardi
Section of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, University of Gothenburg, Odense, Sweden.
Kjell
K
Torén
Upper Airway Research Laboratory, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
Thibaut
T
van Zele
Division of ENT Diseases, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.
Claus
C
Bachert
Clinical Department of Internal Diseases, Allergology and Clinical Immunology, Medical University of Silesia, Katowice, Poland.
Barbara
B
Rymarczyk
Department of Medical Sciences, Respiratory, Allergy and Sleep Research, Uppsala University, Ghent, Sweden.
Christer
C
Janson
Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Umeå University, Chorzów, Sweden.
Bertil
B
Forsberg
Jagiellonian University School of Medicine, Krakow, Poland.
Ewa
E
Niżankowska-Mogilnicka
Population Health and Occupational Medicine Group, National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College London, London, UK.
Peter G J
PGJ
Burney
Adults; Asthma; Chronic rhino-sinusitis; Europe; Fruits; GA2LEN; Meta-analysis; Vegetables