foodconsumer.org: Low vitamin intake linked to high risk of asthma

Low vitamin intake linked to high risk of asthma
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admin on 10/10/2009 21:03:00
 
By David Liu davidl at foodconsumer dot org
Low vitamin intake may raise the risk and severity of asthma, NaturalNews.com
reported citing a new study by researchers from Nottingham University in the UK.
Jo Leonardi-Bee and colleagues meta-analyzed data pooled  from 40 studies
conducted between between 1980 and 2007 and found people with asthma had a
significantly lower daily intake of vitamin A than those who did not have the
illness.
The researchers also found that those who had severe asthma tended to have 50
percent lower vitamin A intake than those who had a milder asthma.
Foods high in vitamin A include sweet potato, pumpkin, carrot, cantaloupe,
spinach, kale, collards, and butternut squash.
In addition to vitamin A, vitamin C intake was also found to be associated with
asthma risk.
People with insufficient intake of vitamin C were at 12 percent lower risk of
developing asthma than those with a higher intake of the nutrient.
Foods high in vitamin C include orange juice, grapefruit juice, strawberries,
tomato, sweet red pepper, broccoli and potato.
The researchers did not find any association between vitamin E intake and asthma
risk. However, people with severe asthma had 20 percent lower levels of vitamin
E in their blood than those with mild asthma.
Other studies have already linked low vitamin D levels with severe asthma.
The results of the current study were published in the journal Thorax.