The Effect of Maternal Nutrition with a High Antioxidant Diet and Mediterranean Diet During Pregnancy on the Prevention of Allergic Diseases in the Children.

The nutrition of the mother during pregnancy is very important on the development of the child's immune system and immune programming. Nutrition with antioxidant-rich fresh vegetables and fruits, dietary fiber consumption, and intake of n-3 unsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) provide important benefits in the development of the child's immune system and intestinal microbiota. Healthy nutritional components such as the Mediterranean diet, which are high in antioxidants, seem to have a direct effect on immune and metabolic processes as a whole and prevent the occurrence of many diseases by reducing chronic inflammation, oxidative damage, and cell destruction. Such a diet during pregnancy is thought to reduce the child's susceptibility to allergic diseases. For this reason, approaches to improving nutrition for the prevention of allergic diseases have been a very important research area in recent years. According to current data, epidemiological studies reveal conflicting results in terms of antioxidant intake and the development of allergic diseases. Many studies and meta-analyses associate low antioxidant intake with wheezing, increased asthma and airway reactivity, and reduced respiratory function. However, it has not been shown that a diet with high maternal antioxidant content has a protective effect on food allergy and other allergic diseases. In this review, the effects of a diet high in antioxidants and a Mediterranean diet during the pregnancy period of the mother on the prevention of food allergy and other allergic diseases in the child will be discussed in detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]