SELF-REPORTED FOOD REACTIONS AND THEIR ASSOCIATIONS WITH ASTHMA

The role of food reactions in asthma has not been well described The o bjectives of this study were to evaluate the types of self-reported re actions to foods in asthmatic patients, and to determine the associati on between self-reported food reactions and self-reported severity of asthma and asthma health care utilization. We characterized 914 patien ts, aged 3-55 years, in a large health maintenance organization. We ch aracterized the patients according to demographic data (age, sex, occu pation, SES, marital status) and their asthma according to duration, t riggers, severity (symptoms, FEV1 percentage predicted) and presence o f atopy. Overall, 414 (45.3%) participants, primarily women, reported adverse reactions to food particularly milk, red wine, eggs, chocolate , and peanuts. Those with food reactions were more likely to report ha ving ever been hospitalized for breathing problems than those without food reactions (31% vs. 22%, two-tailed p = 0.004) although their asth ma was not worse. Self-reported food reactions, particularly in female s, may be associated with increased asthma health care utilization, an d such patients may require closer health care management.