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By Jane Hughes  Health correspondent, BBC News   

Children who eat a Mediterranean diet have a lower risk of developing asthma, but eating three or more burgers a week is linked to a higher risk, research suggests.

Researchers looked at 50,000 children from 20 countries.

Writing in the journal Thorax, they said eating fruit, vegetables and fish appeared to protect against asthma.

But they said eating burgers could be linked to other unhealthy habits, which may be the real trigger factor.

The study looked at the habits of children in both wealthy and poorer countries between 1995 and 2005. Parents were asked about their children's diets, and whether they had ever been diagnosed with asthma or had suffered wheezing.

The effects of their diet seemed to vary depending on where they lived.