NEWSBREAKS INCLUDE:

* Risk of Pregnancy from Anorexia

* Breastfeeding and Childhood Asthma

* 2022 Nutrition Trends

Longer Duration of Exclusive Breastfeeding May Have a Protective Effect on Childhood Asthma

Pregnant women and new mothers are often given information on the benefits of breastfeeding their infants. A new study in Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology shows that a longer period of exclusive breastfeeding was associated with decreased odds of current asthma. The 'dose-response' effect depended on how long the mother breastfed: Babies who were breastfed for 2-4 months were 64% as likely to have as many asthma outcomes as those who were breastfed less than 2 months. Those breastfed for 5-6 months were 61% as likely, and those breastfed for more than 6 months were 52% as likely.

The study was a secondary analysis that combined three studies to get a large number of subjects - more than 2,000 mother-child pairs. In addition, by combining the studies, the authors achieved a demographic distribution. For example, 38% of the respondents were Black and 6% were Hispanic/Latino. The results strengthen current breastfeeding recommendations suggesting lower risk of asthma with more versus less breastfeeding.

Source: Wilson, K et al. The association between duration of breastfeeding and childhood asthma outcomes. Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, 2022; 10.1016/j.anai.2022.04.034.

FDA Provides a New Resource on Dietary Supplements

The Food and Drug Administration has just launched the website called "Supplement Your Knowledge". FDA's goal is to educate consumers on the safety of taking certain supplements alongside their daily routine, especially those who are taking medications at the same time. According to results from the 2002 National Health Interview Survey over half of Americans use dietary supplements and two thirds of people taking dietary supplements while already using prescription drugs don't tell their doctor about it. And things don't seem to have gotten any better since then. The FDA cautions all supplement users to carefully monitor their use and talk to doctors before they begin a new medication regimen. The new FDA website features different sections for healthcare providers, teachers, and consumers. Within each section, FDA has included resources like fact sheets, videos, and links to other agencies' resources. Check out the new website at https://www.fda.gov/food/information-consumers-using-dietary-supplements/supplem. Additional objective and sound information on dietary supplements is available at the National Institutes of Health's Office of Dietary Supplements website https://ods.od.nih.gov. Fact sheets are available there for both professionals and laypeople on many different kinds of dietary supplements along with the Dietary Supplement Label Database with information on thousands of products.

Anorexia Linked to Significant Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes

Women diagnosed with the eating disorder anorexia nervosa are five (500%) times more likely on average to have underweight babies, according to a comprehensive new study.

Results show a substantially increased risk (298%) of a premature birth and more than double the likelihood (341%) of placental abruption. This is compared with mothers without anorexia, which is often a life-long mental health condition.

Data came from a large publicly available database of US hospital inpatient care records. All deliveries between 2004 and 2014 were included that related to women with a diagnosis of anorexia during pregnancy (n=214) and those who did not (n=9,096,574). Overall, results showed significant adverse pregnancy outcomes for women with anorexia.

In addition, they showed that these individuals were more likely to have another psychiatric problem in addition to their eating disorder, to be smokers, to have thyroid disease, to be white, or of higher income. No difference was found in rates for other conditions which can affect women in pregnancy. These included hypertensive diseases, gestational diabetes, placenta previa, postpartum hemorrhage, and the bacterial infection chorioamnionitis. The need for Cesarean section was no greater than in women without an anorexia diagnosis.

The study did have limitations including the fact that the authors were unable to assess the severity of anorexia, nor compliance with treatment. Taking this into account, a recommendation may be that women should be screened for anorexia prior to fertility treatment, which current evidence suggests most physicians fail to do.

Source:Presentation "Pregnancy outcomes in women with anorexia nervosa: a North American population-based study" by Ido Feferkorn MD during the 38th Annual Meeting of European Society of Human Reproductive Endocrinology.

More Americans Concerned With Food Sustainability and Other Findings from IFIC Food and Health Survey

The 2022 Food and Health Survey marks the 17th time the International Food Information Council (IFIC) has surveyed Americans to understand their perceptions, beliefs, and behaviors surrounding food and food-purchasing decisions. This year's survey continues an examination of issues related to personal health, nutrition, eating patterns, food production, and food safety. Among many highlights, this year's survey findings include:

* A sharp uptick in prioritization of environmental sustainability

* Approaches to managing prominent issues like chronic stress and the rising cost of food

* An increase in the adoption of new diets and eating patterns

* Insights about the influence of allergen labeling on food purchases

In addition, for the first time, the 2022 Food and Health Survey reports on the viewpoints and food-purchasing behaviors of Gen Z, providing a full picture of how our youngest adults are shaping national conversations about food and health.

For more information on the specific findings go to: https://foodinsight.org/2022-food-and-health-survey/.