Can vegetables reduce the risk of asthma in children?

Children usually don't like to eat fresh vegetables, even though adults tell them it's healthy. Not just doctors know this is no lie. If you don't eat enough vegetables, you have a heightened risk of asthma, say Canadian researchers in an ongoing research.

According to this research children who eat a lot of vegetables possibly lower their risk of asthma. The protective effect of vegetables is probably due to the high amounts of antioxidant that they contain, mainly vitamin C, vitamin E and beta-carotene. It has been known for a while that the Mediterranean diet with lots of fish, vegetables and legumes can prevent people from getting asthma. Canadian doctors of the university of Manitoba in Winnipeg researched 476 kids on whether or not there is also a connection between the consumption of vegetables and the risk of developing asthma.

 

The children aged between 11 and 14 went through detailed questioning together with their parents about their eating habits in the last year. At the same time a paediatrician specialised in allergies notes whether or not the children have asthma. The research data showed that there is a connection between low vegetable consumption and a heightened risk of asthma. The researchers emphasize that the results the results can't be generalized and don't yet allow detailed recommendations. But because eating vegetables also has other benefits to health, children should be motivated to eat more vegetables like peppers, cucumbers and tomatoes.