Increased Prevalence of Atopic Dermatitis in Children Aged 0-3 Years Highly Exposed to Parabens

Anti-Inflammatory Herbal Extracts and Their Drug Discovery Perspective in Atopic Dermatitis

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is an allergic disorder characterized by skin inflammation. It is well known that the activation of various inflammatory cells and the generation of inflammatory molecules are closely linked to the development of AD. There is accumulating evidence demonstrating the beneficial effects of herbal extracts (HEs) on the regulation of inflammatory response in both in vitro and in vivo studies of AD. This review summarizes the anti-atopic effects of HEs and its associated underlying mechanisms, with a brief introduction of in vitro and in vivo experiment models of AD based on previous and recent studies. Thus, this review confirms the utility of HEs for AD therapy.

Association between urinary methylparaben level and bone mineral density in children and adolescents aged 8-19 years

Previous epidemiological study has explored a positive association between methylparaben (Mep) and bone mineral density (BMD) in adults. Evidence linking Mep and BMD in children and adolescents is very limited. This study examined the association between Mep and BMD in children and adolescents aged 8-19 years. In this cross-sectional study, 1830 children and adolescents aged 8-19 years from NHANES 2011-2016 were analyzed. Mep was ln-transformed for analysis of the skewed distribution. Multiple linear regression analyses were performed to evaluate Mep's association with BMD (containing total BMD, trunk bone BMD, pelvis BMD, lumbar spine BMD, and thoracic spine BMD). Moreover, a generalized additive model (GAM) and a fitted smoothing curve (penalized spline method) were conducted to explore the exact shape of curve between them. In the fully adjusted model, ln-transformed Mep and BMD showed an independent and positive association (total BMD (β = 0.003, 95% CI (0.001, 0.005), P = 0.01), trunk bone BMD (β = 0.002, 95% CI (0.000, 0.005), P = 0.04), pelvis BMD (β = 0.004, 95% CI (0.001, 0.008), P = 0.02), lumbar spine BMD (β = 0.005, 95% CI (0.001, 0.008), P = 0.01), thoracic spine BMD (β = 0.003, 95% CI (0.001, 0.005), P = 0.02)) and a linear association. Subgroup analysis showed positive association between ln-transformed Mep and BMD. Furthermore, the positive association was significant in females and children aged 12-19 years (P for trend < 0.05). This study is the first study to find evidence demonstrating that exposure to Mep may be positively associated with BMD in children and adolescents aged 8-19 years. Validation of our findings will need further research.

The Imprint of Exposome on the Development of Atopic Dermatitis across the Lifespan: A Narrative Review

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic inflammatory skin condition that affects more than 200 million people worldwide, including up to 20% of children and 10% of the adult population. Although AD appears frequently in childhood and often continues into adulthood, about 1 in 4 adults develop the adult-onset disease. The prenatal period, early childhood, and adolescence are considered critical timepoints for the development of AD when the exposome results in long-lasting effects on the immune system. The exposome can be defined as the measure of all the exposures of an individual during their lifetime and how these exposures relate to well-being. While genetic factors could partially explain AD onset, multiple external environmental exposures (external exposome) in early life are implicated and are equally important for understanding AD manifestation. In this review, we describe the conceptual framework of the exposome and its relevance to AD from conception and across the lifespan. Through a spatiotemporal lens that focuses on the multi-level phenotyping of the environment, we highlight a framework that embraces the dynamic complex nature of exposome and recognizes the influence of additive and interactive environmental exposures. Moreover, we highlight the need to understand the developmental origins of AD from an age-related perspective when studying the effects of the exposome on AD, shifting the research paradigm away from the per se categorized exposome factors and beyond clinical contexts to explore the trajectory of age-related exposome risks and hence future preventive interventions.

Intake of allergenic foods at 1.5 years and 3 years of age in a general child population in Japan: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND

Recent studies indicate that the timing of introduction of potentially allergenic food is crucial for the development of food allergy in children. This cross-sectional study aimed to clarify the reality of allergen food intake in a general population of young children in Japan.

METHODS

A questionnaire survey of caregivers was conducted at health checkups for 1.5-year (18-month)-old and 3-year-old children in the fall of 2020. The caregivers were asked about (1) the presence/absence of allergic disease symptoms based on the ISAAC questionnaire, and (2) foods that caregivers avoided giving their children. Ordinal logistic regression analyses were periformed to determine factors associated with food avoidance.

RESULTS

Questionnaires were distributed to 1720 caregivers, and 1603 (93%) responded. The responders consisted of 771 and 832 caregivers who participated in 1.5-year-old and 3-year-old checkups, respectively. The prevalence of allergic diseases was comparable to recent epidemiological studies in Japan, indicating that the population may be representative. At 1.5 years old, more than 50% of the children were not exposed to peanuts, tree nuts, fish eggs, shellfish, and buckwheat. At 3 years old, the avoidance rates of the foods had decreased but were still between 18.8% and 32.0%. On the other hand, the avoidance rates of chicken egg and cow's milk, the top 2 common allergenic foods in Japan, were much lower at 2.8% and 1.5% at 1.5 years, and they decreased to 1.4% and 0.7% at 3 years old, respectively. Ordinal logistic analysis showed that avoidance of chicken egg, cow's milk, and wheat was associated with food allergy diagnosis and chicken egg avoidance with eczema, but avoidance of other foods showed no associations with any risk factors for food allergy.

CONCLUSION

Caregivers avoided giving various foods, independent of allergy risk factors, to their young children. Since delayed introduction of an allergenic food has been reported to increase the risk of developing an allergy to the food, the results warrant future investigation of the development of food allergies in relation to current eating habits and recommendations.