The SEATON @ 25 study recruited its first participant.
This study is lead by Professor Steve Turner. SEATON stands for A Study of Eczema and Asthma To Observe the influence of Nutrition. The underlying question is “is mum’s diet during pregnancy linked to her unborn child’s risk for asthma and eczema. Eczema is skin condition that cause dry and irritated skin1. Asthma is a breathing condition which causes cough, noisy breathing and sometimes also difficulty in breathing.2
The study started in 1997 and recruited 2000 pregnant mothers. The researchers looked a certain factors in the mum’s diet which could influence the immune system and lung development of their baby. These factors included antioxidants (which are thought to help maintain cell health3) and other nutrients from food such as Zinc and Vitamin E. The study followed up the children at ages 5, 10, 15 and now 25 years. At this 25 year follow up, they will be asked to fill in questionnaires and do breathing tests.
If you would like to learn more about the SEATON study and their findings so far, there is information available online for the public.
2: NHS Asthma