Association between Western diet pattern and adult asthma: a focused review

Objective: Radical changes in diet have paralleled the increase in asthma with shifts toward a "Western" diet pattern, characterized by the high intake of processed meats and refined grains, high-fat dairy products, and sugary desserts and drinks. Because diet represents a modifiable risk factor in numerous chronic diseases, the authors examined the association between consumption of a Western diet pattern and asthma incidence, prevalence, and morbidity in adults.

Data sources: PubMed, Cochrane, Web of Science, and Scopus were searched for peer-reviewed publications published from January 1980 to April 2014.

Study selection: Studies retrieved for inclusion assessed dietary patterns representative of a Western diet and asthma incidence, prevalence, respiratory symptoms, and lung function.

Results: Ten observational studies conducted in North American, European, and Asian countries, ranging from 153 to more than 70,000 individuals, did not provide evidence to support an association between a Western dietary pattern and asthma incidence and prevalence. Five of these studies also investigated asthma morbidity, with variable findings.

Conclusion: Current evidence does not support an association between a Western diet and incident or prevalent adult asthma but does suggest a possible link between a Western diet pattern and adult asthma morbidity.