Nutrient-wide associations of asthma, atopic dermatitis, and allergic rhinitis in Korean adults: a cross-sectional analysis of KNHANES 2016–2023

Diet may influence allergic disease risk through oxidative stress, inflammatory signaling, and immune pathways. However, evidence for specific nutrients remains inconsistent, particularly in Asian adult populations. We examined nutrient-wide associations with asthma, allergic rhinitis, and atopic dermatitis in a nationally representative cohort of Korean adults to systematically characterize nutrient-allergy relationships at the population level. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of 37,808 adults (≥ 18 years) from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) 2016-2023. Physician-diagnosed asthma, allergic rhinitis, and atopic dermatitis were identified using standardized questionnaires. Dietary exposure was assessed using a 24-hour dietary recall, from which absolute daily intakes of 28 nutrients were derived. Nutrient variables were transformed as appropriate and standardized to 1-standard-deviation (SD) increments. For each outcome, we fitted survey-weighted logistic regression models with sequential adjustment for demographic and lifestyle covariates. Multiple testing was addressed using false discovery rate (FDR) control (q values < 0.05). In fully adjusted models, greater intakes of total dietary fiber, potassium, and magnesium were associated with lower odds of asthma and remained significant under FDR correction (q < 0.05), with odds ratios (OR) per 1-SD increase ranging from 0.80 to 0.90. In contrast, allergic rhinitis showed positive associations with higher intakes of total fat, vitamin E, riboflavin, and potassium, which also met the FDR criterion (ORs per 1-SD increase approximately 1.05-1.15). For atopic dermatitis, no nutrient achieved FDR significance. In this nutrient-wide evaluation among Korean adults, only a limited subset of nutrients showed robust associations with asthma or allergic rhinitis, and the direction of association varied by allergic diseases. These findings underscore heterogeneity in diet-allergy relationships and support the value of nutrient-wide approaches for prioritizing targets for future prospective research.