An investigational study found that targeted nutrient therapy can improve lung function in obese teens with asthma, without requiring weight loss, according to UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute (CHORI) researchers.
Eating specially designed nutrition bars twice a day for eight weeks improved lung function in obese adolescents with poorly controlled asthma.
The “CHORI-Bar” is a supplement bar designed to fill nutritional gaps in poor diets, UCSF reports. According to the study, which was published in The FASEB Journal, the bar has been in development for 10 years by a team of scientists at CHORI, in collaboration with the USDA’s Healthy Processed Foods Research Unit.
The researchers tested the CHORI-Bar in two groups totaling 56 participants, who attended eight weekly classes that emphasized the importance of healthy eating and exercise, though participants were not required to change their diets. One of the groups also ate two CHORI-Bars each day.
The team measured participants’ lung function and other indicators of metabolic health at the beginning and end of the study. Improvement in lung function occurred only in participants who ate the CHORI-Bar.
