Association of Dietary Fatty Acids with Asthma in Indian School Children

The current study conducted by Awasthi S, et al. aimed to investigate the link between dietary fatty acids and asthma in Indian school children. The researchers enrolled children aged 6-16 from randomly chosen urban schools in ten cities. The prevalence of asthma was evaluated using the International Study on Asthma and Allergies in Childhood Phase III Questionnaire. Dietary intake over three days was assessed through a 24-hour recall method, with fatty acid consumption (saturated, monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, and trans fatty acids) analyzed using DIETSOFT software.

The outcome of the study revealed:

• A total of 2,428 children from 60 schools (49.8% male) participated, revealing an asthma prevalence of 2.4%.
• The average intake of fatty acids was measured in grams per kilogram, with saturated fatty acids (SFA) at 0.19, monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) at 0.18, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) at 0.17, and trans fatty acids (TFA) at 0.003.
• Children with asthma had a higher SFA intake (0.35) compared to those without asthma (0.18). 
• Additionally, higher TFA intake was associated with asthma risk (OR 2.16).

The findings thus, concluded that the intake of SFA and TFA is linked to the occurrence of asthma in children.

Source: Awasthi S, Kumar D, Pandey AK, Agarwal GG, Anish TS, Bharti B, Mahanta BN, Singh CM, Khera D, Shekhawat DS, Mathew JL, Singh K, Bhat MA, Somashekar AR, Kar S, Nair S. Association of Specific Dietary Fatty Acids with Asthma in Urban School Children and Adolescents: Inferences from a Cross-Sectional Multicentric Study From India. Indian Pediatr. 2025 Jan 15;62(1):37-43. doi: 10.1007/s13312-025-3355-9. PMID: 39754429.