Mediaterranean Diet During Pregnancy May Prevent Asthma and Allergies

Filed in archive Pregnancy and Nutrition on June 23, 2008

Photo courtesy of iStockphoto, Leah-Anne Thompson

There have been many research studies on how the maternal diet can influence the health of her child not only while the baby is in utero, but for the rest of the child's life. For example, a recent study suggests that Mediterranean diet (lots of fruits and veggies, whole grain breads and cereals, legumes, and nuts - as well as olive oil and fish) may help lower the chances that your baby will suffer from asthma and skin or nasal allergies.

For example, she and her colleagues report in the journal Thorax, children whose mothers ate eight or more vegetable servings per week during pregnancy were less likely to develop persistent wheezing. The same was true of children whose mothers ate three or more fish servings a week.

The traditional Mediterranean diet is high in antioxidants and healthy omega-3 fats from fish, which together may affect fetal development in a way that lowers the risk of allergies later in life.

It's not like Mediterranean diet is a punishment to eat, so even if these data are just preliminary, I wouldn't have any problems switching to a more Mediterranean-influenced diet. It's healthy, non-fattening, and whether it can really lower allergy risks in your child is then a bonus.