A Study Shows That Sweet Drinks During Pregnancy Might Lead to Asthma in Kids

Remember how we would save up money just to buy a bottle of sweet drink during the primary school days?

Guilty pleasures

We all know that drinking sweet drinks are unhealthy (that’s why it’s guilty) and…wait that’s all I knew.

No, you do not get a prize for knowing more than me; the study below tells me:

Primary school kids are more likely to develop asthma if they “consumed lots of drinks sweetened with sugar and high fructose corn syrup or if their mothers drank these beverages often during pregnancy”, according to Reuters.

A research was conducted

To find out if there is any correlation between childhood asthma, sodas and other sugary drinks, researchers analysed data of 1,000 mother-child pairs.

The data includes their eating habits and info on the kids’ health, including whether they had asthma from 7 to 9 years old.

Findings

• Women who consumed the most soda and sweet drinks during pregnancy were 70% more likely to have a child who has asthma by mid-childhood, as compared to those mothers that seldom or didn’t.
• This conclusion was reached after taking into consideration for maternal obesity and other causes of childhood asthma.
• Moms who consumed the most fructose during pregnancy were 58% more likely to have kids with asthma than those who had little to none.
• Kids who had the most total fructose in their diets earlier in childhood were 79% more likely to develop asthma than children who rarely or never had fructose.
• Taking into consideration the issue of being overweight, kids with the highest fructose consumption were still 77% more likely to have asthma.
• The results remained the same when the weight, income and education levels of the mothers were taken into consideration. Those who consume more of the products tend to be heavier and have lower income and education levels.

Why is that so 

Sweet drinks are known to cause obesity, and obesity is known to possibly cause asthma, although it’s not the only cause.

Limitations of the study

It is uncertain the exact way in which sweet drinks and fructose lead to asthma.

It is assumed that they increase inflammation, which could possibly affect the child’s lung development.

Women were also relied on to recall how much soda they and their children consumed, which may tend to be inaccurate.

What the findings tell us

Women should avoid sodas and sugary foods and drinks during pregnancy and also limit their children’s consumption.

Well, that kinda sucks. I would imagine that they might have certain cravings during pregnancy.

No matter what, it’s always important to consume any food in moderation!