Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids In Cord Blood Linked To Higher Risk Of Adolescent Allergy Problems

Swedish researchers who took cord blood samples of 800 children born in 1996-97 and followed them for diagnosis of allergies in adolescence found that those who had higher levels of omega-3 3 and omega-6 fatty acids at birth were more likely develop allergies. The risk of respiratory allergies in children with higher polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) levels was equally significant in children with allergic and non-allergic mothers. The researchers acknowledged they did not understand how the PUFA levels affected allergy development, but suggested that the process may involve “dampening of the immune activation in infancy needed for proper maturation of the infant's immune system.