Hemilä H, Al-Biltagi M, Baset AA. Vitamin C and asthma in children: modification of the effect by age, exposure to dampness and the severity of asthma.
Clin Transl Allergy 2011;
1:9. [PMID:
22409829 PMCID:
PMC3339402 DOI:
10.1186/2045-7022-1-9]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2011] [Accepted: 08/25/2011] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND
We previously found a significant benefit of vitamin C supplementation in asthmatic children.
PURPOSE
To test whether the effect of vitamin C on asthma is heterogeneous over the participant population.
METHODS
Egyptian asthmatic children between 7 and 10 years of age (n = 60) were included in the cross-over trial. They were administered 0.2 grams per day of vitamin C and placebo for separate 6-week periods. The variation in the vitamin C effect on two clinically relevant outcomes was analyzed: the childhood asthma control test (C-ACT), which measures the severity of asthma symptoms (the scale ranges from 0 to 27 points, < 20 points indicating unsatisfactory asthma control), and FEV1. We used linear modeling to examine the variation of the vitamin C effect in the subgroups.
RESULTS
The effect of vitamin C on the C-ACT was significantly modified by age and baseline C-ACT levels. In the children aged 7.0-8.2 years with a baseline C-ACT of 18 to 19 points, vitamin C increased the C-ACT score by 4.2 points (95% CI: 3.3-5.3); whereas in the children aged 8.3-10 years who had a baseline C-ACT of 14 to 15 points, vitamin C increased the C-ACT score by only 1.3 points (95% CI: 0.1-2.5). The effect of vitamin C on the FEV1 levels was significantly modified by age and exposure to dampness. In the children aged 7.0-8.2 years with no exposure to dampness, vitamin C increased the FEV1 level by 37% (95% CI: 34-40%), whereas in the children aged 8.3-10 years with exposure to dampness or mold in their bedroom more than one year prior to the study, vitamin C increased the FEV1 level by only 21% (95% CI: 18-25%).
CONCLUSIONS
We found strong evidence that the effect of vitamin C on asthmatic children is heterogeneous. Further research is needed to confirm our findings and identify the groups of children who would receive the greatest benefit from vitamin C supplementation.
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