This review examines the interconnected relationships among obesity, asthma, and allergic diseases in pediatric populations, focusing on shared pathophysiological mechanisms (inflammation, adipokines, gut microbiota) and the role of diet as a common environmental driver and potential therapeutic target.
Obesity is associated with increased risk, greater severity, poorer control, and reduced quality of life for asthma and certain allergic diseases in children; maternal obesity is identified as an early-life driver of offspring susceptibility. Diet emerges as a promising preventive and therapeutic intervention target.
As a narrative review, it does not provide pooled effect sizes or systematic evidence synthesis. No original clinical data are presented, and causal directionality between diet, obesity, and allergic outcomes remains difficult to establish from existing evidence.
Screen pediatric patients with asthma or allergic disease for obesity and poor diet quality, as nutritional interventions—started as early as pregnancy—may reduce disease severity and improve treatment response. Early dietary counseling for pregnant women with obesity could lower offspring risk of asthma and allergic conditions.
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