Obesity and Asthma Risk

John M. Peters, Ph.D., Frank D. Gilliland, Ph.D. and W.J. Gauderman, Ph.D.
University of Southern California
P01ES09581 and P30ES07048

Background: Both asthma and obesity in children have been increasing in incidence rapidly in the past 20 years. Health care providers have noticed this association, which has been explained as evidence that children with asthma are less likely to engage in physical activity and therefore are more prone to gaining weight. However, this interpretation has been challenged in recent studies. To determine the relationship between obesity and newly diagnosed asthma among school-age children, this NIEHS-supported research team examined data from participants in the Southern California Children's Health Study.

Advance: The data reveal that new-onset asthma was about 1.5 times higher among overweight children. Boys had a slightly higher risk of about two-fold. Interestingly, the effect of being overweight was higher in non-allergic children than in children with documented allergies.

Implication: These findings may have important public health implications in the battle to control both epidemics of asthma and obesity in children. During the last decade, the incidence of overweight increased by 40%. If obesity is indeed contributing to the asthma epidemic, public health professionals may need to target obesity prevention in efforts to control asthma. Further longitudinal epidemiologic and mechanistic studies are necessary to confirm these results and to identify all causes of the childhood asthma epidemic.

Citation: Gilliland FD, Berhane K, Islan T, McConnell R, Gauderman WJ, Gilliland SS, Avol E, and Peters JM. Obesity and the Risk of Newly Diagnosed Asthma in School-age Children. Am J Epidemiol 2003; 158:406-415.