Mediterranean-style maternal diet tied to less colic and eczema
In 1 324 mother-child pairs from Project Viva, a higher diet score was linked to fewer babies with both conditions. The study is observational and the affected group was small.
A group from the Harvard school of public health, with Boston Children's Hospital, presented on Oct. 12 in JAMA Network Open the results of a cohort that links a mother's diet during pregnancy to colic and eczema in her children. They found an association with the combined condition, not with each one separately.
The analysis draws on Project Viva, which enrolled pregnant women in Massachusetts between 1999 and 2002. Of 2 128 live births, 1 324 mother-child pairs had complete diet and outcome data. With the babies at a median age of 6.3 months, colic alone affected 273 (20.6%), eczema alone 152 (11.5%) and both 61 (4.6%).
What was found
For each additional point on a 0-to-9 Mediterranean Diet scale, the odds ratio for colic with eczema was 0.85 (95% confidence interval: 0.74 to 0.98). On the Dietary Inflammatory Index, one more point was associated with an odds ratio of 1.34. Each weekly serving of fish or shellfish was associated with 0.75. Dairy and eggs were not related to any outcome.
The scores showed no clear link with colic alone or eczema alone. The link was stronger when the mother had a history of allergies. The authors suggest the combined condition could be a variant of colic with an immune origin, and ask other teams to repeat the analysis.
Limits of the study
It is an observational cohort, so it does not prove that a mother's diet causes or prevents anything. Colic and eczema were reported by the mother, without validation against medical records, and the 61 babies with both conditions are few, so the estimates lack precision. The data come from a U.S. region with prenatal care and health insurance, and may not apply to other populations.
The MSD Manual defines colic as excessive crying in a healthy infant and says its cause has not been established. A finding like this one does not change that description.
The results correspond to pregnant women and their babies within this cohort, a specific group, and are not a dietary recommendation for the general population. Questions about eating during pregnancy are settled with the health personnel who follow each case.
