Abstract
A dietary survey and a blood chemistry test were carried out in order to investigate and make recommendation on the improvement of the dietary habits of students various allergic predispositions. From the nutritional aspect, fatty acid intake was compared between those students who presented allergic diseases (Group A) and healthy students as controls (Group N). In addition, the correlation between dietary fatty acid content and its serum level was also investigated in these groups. The results were as follows : (1) Intake of either energy, protein, lipids, sugars, dietary fibers, niacin, zinc or copper was less in Group A than in Group N. In Group A, the energy source rate for lipids was higher than 26%, however, the intakes of EPA and DHA of n-3 fatty acids were slightly higher than 21% and 32% of each national average, respectively. (2) It was demonstrated that dietary fatty acid content was not directly reflected in the serum levels. The ratio of n-6/n-3 in the serum was higher for Group A than Group N, whereas the ratio in the diet was higher in Group N than in Group A. When compared with Group N, the serum levels of DHA and EPA were lower in Group A, but, the serum levels of arachidonic acid, which is a n-6 fatty acid was found to be slightly higher in Group A. These results suggest that the serum level of n-3 fatty acid does not always rise as a result of a deficiency in n-3 fatty acids. (3) It is necessary for students with allergic diseases, except for those with alimentary allergies, to make every effort to increase the absolute amount of food intake as well as the types of food in their diet on the whole without any food restrictions. In regard to fatty acid intake, it appears necessary to further improve the fatty add balance especially for mono-unsaturated and n-3 fatty acids.
