Maternal nutrition during pregnancy and lactation in relation to allergy in childhood

Research Project, 2018 – 2020

This project aims to study how the diet of pregnant and breastfeeding mothers affects the development of the immune system and the risk of developing allergies in their children.
The project will be conducted in the NICE study's mother-child cohort, which collected data from 650 mothers and children. Mothers' diets are collected by questionnaire, and nutritional status (e.g. fatty acids) is measured in blood samples from mothers and children during pregnancy, delivery and lactation, and breast milk samples from mothers during lactation. Allergy is diagnosed in children ages 1, 4 and 6.

The goal is to find preventive strategies to reduce the risk of allergy, the most common disease affecting children.