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Background: The increase in allergic diseases in children has coincided with the westernization of lifestyles. Although clustering of modifiable lifestyles has been frequently reported in children, there is limited research on how lifestyle factors collectively contribute to allergic conditions. Our aim was to identify lifestyle clusters among Finnish school-aged children and explore their associations with the prevalence of allergic disease symptoms and sensitization., Methods: We used cross-sectional data from the international ISCOLE survey and its Finnish ancillary allergy study conducted in 2012-2013. We studied 148-461 children aged 9-11 years living in the metropolitan area of Finland. Parents completed a questionnaire on their child's allergic disease symptoms, and specific IgE responses from blood samples were analyzed to determine allergic sensitization. Lifestyle factors considered in clustering were moderate-to-vigorous-physical activity (MVPA) and nighttime sleep recorded by accelerometers, screen time inquired via a questionnaire, and healthy and unhealthy dietary patterns from food frequency questionnaire data. Lifestyle clusters were identified using K-means cluster analysis, and their associations with allergic disease symptoms and sensitization were explored using logistic regression models., Results: Two distinct and stable clusters were identified: 'healthier lifestyle & lower MVPA' and 'unhealthier lifestyle & higher MVPA'. After adjustments, children in the 'unhealthier lifestyle & higher MVPA' cluster did not show significantly different odds for symptoms of asthma (OR: 0.80, 95% CI: 0.46-1.37), allergic rhinitis (OR: 1.32, 95% CI: 0.77-2.24), or eczema (OR: 0.89, 95% CI: 0.43-1.77) as compared to those in the 'healthier lifestyle & lower MVPA' cluster. Similar results were observed for sensitization to ≥ 1 inhaled allergen (OR: 1.27, 95% CI: 0.53-3.10) and sensitization to ≥ 1 food allergen (OR: 0.91, 95% CI: 0.30-2.60)., Conclusions: The results suggest that modifiable lifestyle factors may not play a significant role in allergic conditions within the examined age group. Lifestyle behaviors established in earlier childhood may serve as more credible predictors of allergic outcomes., Competing Interests: Declarations Ethics approval and consent to participate The present study was conducted according to the Declaration of Helsinki and approved by the Helsinki and Uusimaa Hospital District Ethics Committees. Informed parental consent and child assent were obtained for each participant. Consent for publication Not applicable. Competing interests The authors declare that they have no competing interests. The ISCOLE survey was funded by The Coca-Cola Company. The funder had no role in the design, data collection, data analysis, or manuscript preparation of this study., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Background: Studies investigating dietary resemblance between parents and their children have gained mixed results, and the resemblance seems to vary across nutrients, foods, dietary-assessment tools used, and parent-child pairs. We investigated parent-child dietary resemblance using a novel approach in applying statistical analysis, which allowed the comparison of 'whole-diet' between parents and their children. Additionally, we sought to establish whether sociodemographic factors or family meals were associated with dietary resemblance and whether parent-child dietary resemblance was dependent on the parent providing food consumption data on behalf of the child (father or mother, "the respondent")., Methods: The DAGIS study investigated health behaviors among Finnish preschoolers using a cross-sectional design. One parent filled in a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) measuring the child's food consumption outside preschool hours during the last week. In addition, we instructed both parents or legal guardians, should the child have two, to fill in a similar FFQ regarding their own food use. Parents also reported their educational level, the number of children living in the same household, and the number of family meals. As a measure of dietary resemblance between a parent and a child, we computed Spearman correlations ranging mostly from no resemblance (0) to complete resemblance (+ 1) between parent-child pairs over the 'whole-diet' (excluding preschool hours). These resemblance measures were further investigated using linear mixed models., Results: We obtained 665 father-child and 798 mother-child resemblance measures. Mother-child resemblance was on average 0.57 and stronger than father-child resemblance (0.50, p < 0.0001), which was explained by a parent-respondent interaction: the diet of the child resembled more the diet of the parent who provided food consumption data for the child. In univariate models, father- and mother-reported number of family meals were positively associated with father-child and mother-child resemblances. Mother-reported number of family meals was positively associated with mother-child resemblance in a full model., Conclusions: The diet of the child seems to resemble more the diet of the parent responsible for the reporting of food consumption. Studies should report who provided the food consumption data for the child and take this into account in analyses, since reporter-bias can influence the results.