The horrific result of eating fast food: Our children are getting serious breathing problems, study reveals

by: | October 8, 2018
The horrific result of eating fast food: Our children are getting serious breathing problems, study reveals
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(NaturalHealth365) These days fast food is virtually synonymous with “unhealthy.” Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to be enough to stop people from eating it – or stop them from feeding it to their kids.

In fact, according to recently published data from the CDC’s National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, more than 1 in 3 Americans eat fast food every day. And while there’s no question that this toxic ‘food’ is making people fat, it is also clearly contributing to the rising prevalence of asthma and allergies, especially among children.

Shocking international study reveals what’s really happening to our kids and their health, due to poor eating habits

In 2013, team of international researchers from New Zealand, Spain, Australia, the UK, and Germany published their findings from a Phase III study known as the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC). This study, which first appeared in the peer-reviewed journal Epidemiology, induced some harrowing conclusions about fast food consumption.

Adolescents (aged 13-14) who eat fast food at least 3 times per week are nearly 40% more likely to have severe asthma.  And children (aged 6-7) who eat fast food at this alarming frequency are nearly 30% more likely to have severe asthma.

Both children and adolescents who regularly eat fast food (or, presumably, are provided fast food by their parents) were also more likely to have eczema, a painful condition causing skin irritation, and rhinitis, an allergic condition causing symptoms such as runny nose and watery eyes.

The researchers suggest that a causal link between fast food, asthma, and allergies is plausible, given that fast foods are loaded with “trans fatty acids, sodium, carbohydrates and sugar…and possibly preservatives” which are known to have immune-mediated inflammatory effects on the body.

It’s also worth noting here that obesity is a recognized risk factor for asthma, and the types of ingredients found in fast food drastically increases the likelihood of becoming obese or overweight.

Simply put, (and backed by good science) if you want the perfect recipe to make a child fat and asthmatic, feeding them fast food should do the trick.

If fast food harms, then what food helps? The ISAAC study confirms some logical news

One drawback to the ISAAC study is that it draws on self-reported questionnaire data. Survey-taking is generally considered a weaker type of evidence compared to more rigorous scientific methods such as randomized controlled trials. And the questionnaires asked study participants to recall their dietary habits over the past 12 months – information which can be fabricated or forgotten.

That said, sample sizes were impressively large – the study included data from 319,196 13-14 -year-olds and 181,631 6-7-year-olds from at least 100 different countries.

The researchers also discovered some positive news which confirms what many health-conscious people already knew: eating fruit regularly offers health protective benefits. Adolescents and children in the study who ate fruit 3 or more times per week were 11% and 14% less likely (respectively) to have severe asthma.

Anyone feel like nutrient-dense (organic) fruits and vegetables?  I say ‘let’s do it!’

The more we get away from eating processed food, the better.  That’s what I call a ‘happy meal.’

Resources for this article include:

CDC.gov
AAAI.org
BMJ.com
ScienceMag.org
Heart.org
TheGuardian.com
ScienceDaily.com

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