Micronutrient intake and the risk of herpes zoster: a case-control study.
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Matched case-control study
PubMed 16330478 · doi:10.1093/ije/dyi270
What was done
A community-based matched case-control study was conducted across 22 general practices in London to evaluate associations between herpes zoster risk and dietary intake of fruits, vegetables, and seven micronutrients (vitamins A, B6, C, E, folic acid, zinc, and iron). Diet was assessed via an interviewer-administered food-frequency questionnaire in 243 incident zoster cases and 483 controls matched by age, sex, and practice. Odds ratios were estimated using conditional logistic regression.
What was found
A strong graded association was observed between low fruit intake and increased zoster risk: individuals eating less than one piece of fruit per week had more than three times the adjusted risk of zoster compared with those eating more than three portions per day. None of the seven individual micronutrients showed a statistically significant association when analyzed singly. Among individuals older than 60 years, a combined micronutrient intake measure and vegetable intake each showed similar dose-related associations with zoster risk (exact odds ratios and confidence intervals not reported in abstract).
Why it matters
This study provides evidence that diets rich in fruit, vegetables, and combined micronutrients may protect against varicella-zoster virus reactivation, particularly in older adults.
Limits
As a retrospective case-control design, dietary assessment via food-frequency questionnaire is vulnerable to recall bias. The abstract omits exact point estimates, confidence intervals, and p-values for most comparisons, and biomarkers of micronutrient status or immune function were not measured.
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