A sufficient level of vitamin E in pregnant women is essential in keeping children free from asthma. According to a study, kids born to moms with low vitamin E are more prone to asthma and will need medication in the first two years of life.

According to the lead author, Dr. Cosby Stone of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, there is plenty of vitamin E available in oils such as safflower, sunflower, corn, soy, and canola oils.

Earlier research on mice by the same team had shown linkages between vitamin E and asthma.

"We hypothesized that maternal vitamin E levels, reflecting levels that the fetus encounters during pregnancy, would affect how kids breathe," Stone said.

Methodology Of Study

The research involved monitoring the health of more than 650 mothers and their children, who were tracked until the children turned 2 years old.

Feedback was taken from mothers on whether their child experienced breathing difficulties or were prescribed medications for asthma.

It was found that the mothers of children who wheezed or took asthma medications were more likely those who had low vitamin E levels, particularly that of alpha-tocopherol, after birth.

Alpha-tocopherol is a substance found in vitamin E. The best sources of this substance are safflower and sunflower oils, Stone said.

Though the study was able to outline an association between vitamin E levels and asthma symptoms, no cause-and-effect relationship was established.

The researchers will be presenting the evidence at the association's annual meeting in Atlanta. The study is published the journal Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

Asthma Death Rates

Meanwhile, asthma-related mortality rates are quite high among black American children. They are six times more vulnerable to death than Hispanics or white kids, according to new research.

The reason for the varying death rates "may imply a differential access to care" based on the race of the family, said lead author Dr. Anna Chen Arroyo.

There is no cure for asthma and it can turn deadly if it goes out of control. Proper diagnosis, medication, and management are vital, the doctor added.

"Asthma is a chronic condition which affects approximately 9 million children in the United States," noted Dr. Sherry Farzan, who specializes in allergy and immunology at Northwell Health in Great Neck, New York.

Families can certainly control a child's exposure to asthma by reducing allergens at home, Farzan said.

Vitamin D Helpful In Mitigation

Meanwhile, the severity of asthma attacks can be reduced by having a daily dose of vitamin D, according to a study in India.

The study involved 120 asthma and normal patients who were in the age group of 17 to 80 years. The researchers studied the participants' vitamin D and magensium levels, and they found that nearly 63 percent of participants with asthma were alarmingly low in these essential nutrients.

It was found that asthma intensity increased with the greater deficiency of the two vital components.

The study was conducted by a team of researchers led by M.N. Shaikh and B.R. Malapati from PIMSR Waghodia.

Severe cases of asthma had magnesium levels that only came up to 1.53 milligrams per deciliter or less, while vitamin D levels were at 31 nanograms per milliliter and less.

Researchers said there is a strong correlation between the severity of asthma attacks and vitamin D or magnesium.

In explaining the role that magnesium ions play, the study noted serum magnesium levels have a bearing on the concentration of vitamin D circulating in the blood as well as overall immunity, showing how magnesium affects how asthma develops.