Maternal Avocado Intake Tied to 44% Drop in Infant Food Allergy Risk

A new observational study found fresh avocado consumption during pregnancy led to a 44% lower risk of infant food allergy development at 12 months, even after adjustment for lifestyle, delivery, and maternal health factors.

Investigators from the Institute of Public Health and Clinical Nutrition at the University of Eastern Finland linked avocado consumption to lower offspring allergy, building on earlier evidence showing that plant-heavy diets, including Mediterranean or vegetarian diets, could prevent childhood allergies.

“As a caregiver, the growing prevalence of food allergy feels very scary and out of my control,” said Sari Hantunen, a senior lecturer at the University of Eastern Finland and study author. “There is no cure for food allergy, but promising prevention and therapeutic strategies are in development as well as emerging research such as this.”

Estimates from Food Allergy Research and Education (FARE) suggest infant food allergies affect nearly one in 13 children. Maternal exposures during pregnancy, including diet and lifestyle, have various impacts on a child’s allergic outcomes. Despite the immune and metabolic health support of avocados, Hantunen and colleagues highlighted a lack of research into intake during pregnancy and pediatric allergic outcomes.

Using the Kuopio Birth Cohort (KuBiCo) from 2013 to 2022, the investigative team measured maternal avocado consumption during pregnancy and its impact on offspring's allergic health outcomes. An online food frequency questionnaire determined avocado consumption (>0 grams) in trimesters (T) 1 and 3, while non-consumption was defined as no reports of avocado consumption (0 grams). Across 12 months, the questionnaire defined offspring allergic outcomes, including rhinitis, paroxysmal wheezing, atopic eczema, and food allergy.

Adjustment for factors, including maternal and gestational age at delivery, education, diet quality, smoking, alcohol consumption, body mass index (BMI) in the first trimester, and breastfeeding, still revealed a significantly higher rate of food allergy in non-avocado consumers compared with consumers (4.2% vs 2.4%; P = .019). Hantunen and colleagues noted that no link was identified for other allergic conditions in the fully adjusted model.

Notably, these data suggested mothers who consumed avocado during pregnancy tended to be older at delivery, less likely to experience a caesarean delivery, non-smokers, breastfed for longer, had a higher diet quality score, and showed lower BMI levels in the first trimester.

Hantunen and colleagues noted these data did not determine causation, and further research is required to understand the exact mechanism and translation to other populations. However, they noted the potential value of avocados in a nutritional diet.

“Based on these findings, it’s encouraging to know that eating avocados may provide even more value to maternal and children’s health, beyond the benefits that have already been established through scientific research,” Hantunen added.

References

1. Cheng FW, Bauer E, Ford NA, et al. Avocado consumption during pregnancy linked to lower child food allergy risk: prospective KuBiCo study. Pediatr Res. Published online March 7, 2025. doi:10.1038/s41390-025-03968-4

2. Eating avocados during pregnancy associated with lower food allergy risk in baby. EurekAlert! May 7, 2025. Accessed May 9, 2025. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1082890.

3. Facts and statistics. FoodAllergy.org. Accessed May 9, 2025. https://www.foodallergy.org/resources/facts-and-statistics.