Dietary patterns and respiratory health in adults from nine European countries—Evidence from the GA2LEN study

Background: Dietary patterns defined using principal component analysis (PCA) offer an alternative to the analysis of individual foods and nutrients and have been linked with asthma and allergic disease. However, results have not been reproducible in different settings. Objective: To identify dietary patterns common to different European countries and examine their associations with asthma and allergic symptoms. Methods: In sixteen study centers in nine European countries, 3206 individuals aged 15-77 years completed a common, internationally validated, food frequency questionnaire and a respiratory symptoms questionnaire. The outcomes of interest were current asthma, asthma symptoms score (derived based on responses to 5 asthma symptom-related questions), atopy (positive skin prick test). Spirometry was used to estimate forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1), forced vital capacity (FVC), the FEV1/FVC, spirometric restriction (FVC below the lower limit of normal (

Keywords:

• Immunology
• Wheeze
• Disease
• Vital capacity
• FEV1/FVC ratio
• Nutritional epidemiology
• Spirometry
• Atopy
• Asthma
• Medicine
• Internal medicine
• Allergy

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