Unhealthy Habits and Comorbidities Associated With Uncontrolled Asthma in Young People

To investigate the relationship between oral health, diet, and other comorbidities and uncontrolled asthma in older teenagers.One hundred twenty-six high school and university students between the ages of 17 and 19 years in an urban area of northeastern Mexico.A total of 126 patients with diagnosed asthma were enrolled in a larger cross-sectional study from January to December 2023: 26 with uncontrolled asthma and 100 with controlled, determined by the “Asthma Test Control” questionnaire. They were further studied with the use of surveys, direct questioning, and a physical examination.Analysis using a multivariate logistic regression model and adjusted for variables (gender and active smoking) showed that there was a significant association between allergic rhinitis, gingivitis, sugary product consumption, alcohol consumption, and obesity with uncontrolled asthma. Dental caries and physical activity had no significant difference between the 2 groups.Uncontrolled asthma is associated with many known, unchangeable, risk factors such as allergic rhinitis, race, and socioeconomic status. However, diet, dental health, and weight are all modifiable and are shown in this study to have a significant association with uncontrolled vs controlled asthma.Uncontrolled asthma is incredibly dangerous at all ages and is one of the biggest causes of emergency department visits, hospitalizations, and morbidity and mortality in pediatrics. This study supports previous research that found that young people with asthma with allergic rhinitis are 3 times more likely to have uncontrolled asthma. Lifestyle changes that might improve patients’ asthma control are especially important for children that might be limited in terms of medications, steroid dosages, and unmodifiable risk factors. Poor dental health leading to inflammation, alcohol consumption impacting lung function, and sugary product consumption as a risk factor for asthma development are 3 areas that teenagers, especially if informed by their pediatrician, pulmonologist, or allergist of the specific health benefits, could control on their own. It was interesting, however, that caries and physical activity levels were split almost evenly between the 2 groups. Although this study was done on a specific population of Mexican students and did not use pulmonary function tests to diagnose uncontrolled asthma, the conclusions are timely and important.