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Directing immune development to curb sky-rocketing disease

Once upon a time it was infectious diseases like polio, measles or tuberculosis that most worried parents. With these threats now largely under control, parents face a new challenge – sky-rocketing rates of non-infectious diseases such as asthma, allergies and autism.

Associations between maternal antioxidant intakes in pregnancy and infant allergic outcomes

Antioxidant intakes in pregnancy may influence fetal immune programming and the risk of allergic disease.

Sensitizing and Th2 Adjuvant Activity of Cysteine Protease Allergens

Here, we report on a model that does not use Th2-skewing adjuvants and yet achieves sensitization solely via the nasal mucosa.

High-Fiber Diet during Pregnancy Characterized by More Fruit and Vegetable ConsumptionHigh-Fiber Diet during Pregnancy Characterized by More Fruit and Vegetable Consumption

Higher dietary fiber intakes during pregnancy may have the potential health benefits of increasing gut microbiome diversity, lowering the risk of glucose intolerance and pre-eclampsia, achieving appropriate gestational weight gain, and preventing constipation. In this observational cohort study, we have assessed the dietary fiber intakes of 804 women in late pregnancy, using a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (SQ-FFQ). Overall, the median (interquartile range) dietary fiber intake was 24.1 (19.0-29.7) grams per day (g/day). Only 237/804 (29.5%) women met the recommended Adequate Intake (AI) of dietary fiber during pregnancy of 28 g/day.

Study protocol for a randomised controlled trial evaluating the effect of folic acid supplementation beyond the first trimester on maternal plasma unmetabolised folic acid in late gestation

Taking folic acid containing supplements prior to and during early pregnancy reduces the risk of neural tube defects. Neural tube defects occur prior to 28 days postconception, after which, there is no proven benefit of continuing to take folic acid. However, many women continue to take folic acid containing supplements throughout the pregnancy.

Ovalbumin in breast milk is associated with a decreased risk of IgE-mediated egg allergy in children

Showed for the first time that the presence of an egg-derived allergen in breast milk is associated with a reduced risk of egg allergy in children at 2.5 years of age

A role for early oral exposure to house dust mite allergens through breast milk in IgE-mediated food allergy susceptibility

This study highlights an unpredicted potential risk factor for the development of food allergy, that is, D pteronyssinus allergens in breast milk

The challenges of developing and optimising an assay to measure 25-hydroxyvitamin D in saliva

We have developed an LC-MS/MS assay that accurately measures saliva 25(OH)D3 levels, which correlated with serum levels

Maternal Fiber Dietary Intakes during Pregnancy and Infant Allergic Disease

Maternal resistant starch consumption was differentially associated with infant phenotypes, with reduced risk of infant wheeze, but increased risk of eczema

Prebiotics: mechanisms and preventive effects in allergy

In this review, we describe both the mechanisms and the therapeutic evidence from preclinical and clinical studies exploring the role of prebiotics in allergy prevention