The Important Asupan Serat Impacts Positively Reduces The Impact Of Risk On Children

Illustration (Vitolda Klein/Unsplash)

JAKARTA - Pediatrician consultant immunology consultant from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Indonesia (FKUI) dr. Endah Citraresmi, Sp.A(K) said, consuming enough fiber is not only good for digestive tract health, but can also reduce the risk of allergies in children.

"In addition to being able to help optimize the health of cerina channels that are crucial for growth and development and health, adequate daily fiber intake can also affect health conditions, one of which is allergies for children," said Endah, as reported by ANTARA, Thursday, August 25.

Allergi itself is a form of immune system reaction to other substances that are considered dangerous, although they are not. Food is one of the factors that trigger allergies that children often experience. According to Endah, digestive tract is a place to live in trillions of microbiota. Some of these microbiotes have health benefits, some actually trigger various kinds of health problems.

Children suffering from allergies are said by Endah to have less amount and diversity of cerena channel microbiota than children who do not suffer from allergies. For this reason, so that there is no disbiosis or imbalance in the composition and function of the cerena channel microbiota, children must get sufficient fiber intake.

"We know there are good bacteria and pathogenic bacteria that cause disease. We want, in the intestines, the good bacteria are dominant. So, we have to feed good bacteria," added Endah.

Prebiotics will be used to support the growth and survival of probiotics or bacteria in digestion. The final result is to produce short chain fatty acids consisting of three important components, namely grains, acetates, and propionates.

"Butirates not only work in the intestines, but also enter the blood vessels and other organs and then work as a signal to communicate with the brain and regulate the immune system and inflammation. This has something to do with allergies," said Endah.

"For this reason, in children who have allergies, parents must be able to choose the right type of food and do not contain substances that cause allergies, keep their nutritional intake balanced and can also be given food or drinks that are confirmed by fiber," he concluded.

The intake of fiber needed according to the Regulation of the Minister of Health of the Republic of Indonesia Number 28 of 2019 concerning the Adequacy Rate of Nutrition recommended for the Indonesian people is 19 grams per day for children aged 1-3 years, 20 grams for ages 4-6 years, and continues to increase with age.