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Paediatric Pulmonology and Allergology
2008 April, Vol. XI, No. 1 (3822-3835)
NUTRITION IN PEDIATRIC LUNG DISEASE
Larry C. Lands
McGill University Children’s Hospital and McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, Canada
The respiratory system exists in an oxygenated milieu and is recurrently exposed to both endogenous and exogenous oxidants and irritants. The most significant exogenous insults to the lungs come from pollutants, especially linked to cigarete smoke, motor vehicle exhaust, and industrial pollution. Lung health depends upon a system of antioxidant protection that, in turn, is intimately linked with our diet. Fruits and vegetables, and fatty cold-water fish provide vitamins, polyphenols and omega-3 fatty acids. These work together to provide comprehensive antioxidant protection and modulate inflammatory reactions. The chronic inflammation of asthma and cystic fibrosis is associated with oxidative stress. The rise in the prevalence in atopic disease in children over the past decades has been attributed to environmental changes. This fact may, in part, be related to adoption of westernized diets, which are relatively deficient in antioxidants. Certainly nutritional alterations, particularly deficiencies, have significant impact on many aspects of the immune response. This is a review of oxidant sources and the antioxidant system, as pertains to the respiratory system. The challenge to both clinicians and investigators is to understand how defenses are integrated and coordinated so that enhanced protection can be delivered (Paediatric respiratory reviews 2007; 8: 305–12, translation and publication with permission).