Dietary Influences on Asthma and Allergic Outcomes
Summary
Diet exerts a multifaceted influence on the development and severity of asthma and allergic conditions through modulation of immune function, airway inflammation and gut microbiota composition. Diets rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains and oily fish deliver antioxidants, fibre and omega-3 fatty acids that counteract pro-inflammatory pathways, enhance epithelial barrier integrity and support regulatory immune responses. By contrast, Western-style patterns characterised by high intakes of refined sugars, processed meats and sugar-sweetened beverages promote systemic inflammation, oxidative stress and dysbiosis, which can exacerbate airway hyper-responsiveness and allergic sensitisation. Early-life exposures—including maternal diet during pregnancy and infant feeding practices—appear to programme immune trajectories and lung development, with long-term implications for respiratory risk. Public health measures targeting dietary quality thus offer promise for both primary prevention and adjunctive management of asthma and allergic disorders on a global scale.
Research from Nature Portfolio
A nationwide evaluation of a sugar taxation policy assessed its impact on childhood asthma hospital admissions over an eight-year period. Following introduction of a levy on sugar-sweetened beverages, hospitalisations for paediatric asthma decreased by approximately one-fifth relative to counterfactual trends. Reductions were consistent across age groups and socioeconomic strata, suggesting that fiscal strategies to lower free sugar intake may yield unanticipated respiratory health benefits in addition to obesity prevention.
Dietary Influences on Asthma and Allergic Outcomes publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in dietary influences on asthma and allergic outcomes across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Mendelian randomisation: An analytical approach using genetic variants as proxies for modifiable exposures to infer causality in observational data.
Forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1): A spirometric measurement of lung function indicating the volume of air exhaled in the first second of a forced breath.
Atopy: A hereditary predisposition to develop immunoglobulin E-mediated allergic reactions to common environmental antigens.
Odds ratio (OR): A statistical measure expressing the likelihood of an outcome occurring in an exposed group relative to a reference group.
References
- The UK Soft Drinks Industry Levy and childhood hospital admissions for asthma in England. Nature Communications (2024).
- Dietary factors and risk for asthma: A Mendelian randomization analysis. Frontiers in Immunology (2023).
- Dietary patterns, lung function and asthma in childhood: a longitudinal study. Respiratory Research (2023).
- Sugar-Sweetened Beverages and Allergy Traits at Second Year of Life: BRISA Cohort Study. Nutrients (2023).
About these summaries
This Nature Research Intelligence Topic summary is created with the cited references and a large language model. We take care to ground generated text with facts, and have systems in place to gain human feedback on the overall quality of the process in line with our AI principles. We strive to create accurate and useful summaries for people unfamiliar with the research topic and that supports this goal. These pages are a beta release and will be updated as we learn how best to help people gain value from a research topic summary.
Turn complex research questions into confident strategic decisions
When you're under pressure to set direction, justify investment, or understand your competitive position, you need more than raw data — you need trusted insights you can act on.
Benchmark your performance against global peers using robust, methodologically sound analysis.
Combine quantitative metrics with qualitative expert insight to uncover strengths, gaps and emerging opportunities.
Gain tailored, decision-ready recommendations aligned to your strategic priorities.
Talk to us to learn more about our data dashboards and bespoke strategy reports.
Grow research skills, confidence and careers with training built for every stage of the research lifecycle.
Developed with Nature Portfolio journal Editors and internationally renowned experts. Discover three ways to learn:
Self-paced, online courses in convenient bite-sized units, covering key skills across scientific writing, publishing, grant writing, data analysis, and more.
Expert trainer-led workshops with hands-on exercises and real-time feedback across core research skills, delivered via interactive group sessions.
Editor-led workshops combining core principles in writing and publishing, personalised 1:1 feedback from Nature Portfolio Editors and hands-on exercises.
Explore course catalogues and workshop agendas, enquire about the options or request institutional pricing.