Prenatal Fish Oil, High-Dose Vitamin D Cuts Croup Risk in Offspring

TUESDAY, Sept. 20, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- Fish oil and high-dose vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy cut the risk of croup in early childhood, according to a study presented at the European Respiratory Society International Congress 2022, held from Sept. 4 to 6 in Barcelona, Spain.

Nicklas Brustad, M.D., from Copenhagen University Hospital in Denmark, and colleagues conducted a 2x2 factorial double-blinded, randomized controlled trial to evaluate the supplementation effects of (1) 2.4-gram fish oil containing long-chain n-3-polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 LCPUFA) versus olive oil and (2) high-dose (2,800 IU/day) versus standard-dose (400 IU/day) vitamin D from pregnancy week 24 until 1 week after birth on the risk of offspring croup until age 3 years. Analysis included 736 mother-child dyads.

The researchers found that 14 percent of children had croup before age 3 years. The risk of croup was lower for n-3 LCPUFA versus olive oil (11 versus 17 percent) and for high-dose vitamin D versus standard dose (11 versus 18 percent). There was no interaction observed between the two supplements, nor did the results change when adjusting for each other, persistent wheeze, and lower respiratory tract infection.

"There is currently no vaccine against the pathogen that causes this disease," Brustad said in a statement. "Therefore, other preventive strategies are needed, and measures initiated during pregnancy might be important since croup occurs in babies and young children."

Abstract No. OA2189

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