Food allergies affect 6-8% of children, with eggs, milk and peanuts being the most common cause of problems. When exposed to an allergen, symptoms can include vomiting, cramps, hives, swelling, eczema, respiratory problems and, in severe cases, anaphylactic shock. This can lead to hospitalization or even death.
With so much concern, more than 80% of parents are opposed to ‘serious concerns’ about their child’s food allergy, a new study published yesterday revealed. In fact, 42% of parents were found to be meeting the ‘clinical cut-off’ for post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), and 39% said they were ‘moderate to severely anxious’.
Parents who required adrenaline self-injection (e.g. Epipen) were seven times more likely to experience PTSS.
What causes PTSS in parents?
Judith Young, of Norwich School of Medicine UEA and Addenbrooke Hospital, in her role as Honorary Consultant Clinical Psychologist noted that parents were reporting psychological distress associated with their child’s allergy. However, to date, little research has focused on this issue.
This is where Dr. Kate Roberts graduated. She undertook the study as part of her doctoral dissertation at UEA, in collaboration with Young, Dr Alex Brightwell from Norfolk and the University of Norwich Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Professor Richard Meiser-Stedman, from Norwich at UEA School Medicine.
“Caring for a child with a food allergy can be very challenging – especially as they can be exposed to the foods to which they are allergic, even with very careful management,”Dr. Roberts said.
“We wanted to see how anxiety, worry and PTSS affected parents of children with food allergies. And we also assessed whether the level of anxiety and stress was linked to factors such as the severity of the child’s allergy. ”
A total of 105 parents of children with food allergies completed questionnaires with online questionnaires about their experiences. About half of the children were taken to the hospital at least once due to an allergic reaction.
The team considered the child’s allergy level along with parental insecurity – how they manage unforeseen events, how they can’t control how their child sees food they are on. allergic. They also assessed parents’ ‘self-efficacy’ – their confidence in allergy management.
Dr Roberts, who now works at Cambridgeshire Community Services NHS Trust and Lynn King at Queen Elizabeth Hospital, said: “We found that a large proportion of parents – 81% – reported clinically significant concerns and 42% reported significant trauma symptoms associated with their child’s food allergy. “
The study found mixed results for a correlation between the severity of the child’s allergy and the parent’s likelihood that PTSS will have a ‘clinically significant’ effect.
“Parents who said their child had self-injected adrenaline injections (AAIs) were about seven times more likely to report clinically significant PTSS,”Dr Roberts explained. “But we found mixed results for the link between allergy depth and parental mental health, with PTSS observed in parents of children with both life-threatening allergies and milder.”
A clearer link could be drawn to levels of anxiety and parents’ own approach to uncertainty and self-efficacy, she continued. “Increased intolerance of insecurity and lower food allergy self-efficacy were associated with worse psychological outcomes.”
‘Increased awareness’ needed for mental health and allergies
Dr Roberts believes it is important to raise awareness of the mental health issues associated with allergens. “This really highlights the need for greater awareness of the mental health problems that parents of children with food allergies may have.”She said.
“You know what factors can predict different important psychological outcomes as it can help identify those parents who may be struggling with their mental health and mental health. help them overcome some of the difficulties they face. ”
Dr Brightwell, a consultant pediatrician, emphasized the importance of contributing to the emerging body of evidence and ongoing research into the impact of food allergies on families.
“Anxiety and worry about having a baby with food allergies is something we see every day. We look forward to working with UEA on further research to develop tools to support families affected by food allergies, ”Dr. Brightwell said.
‘Maintenance support services failed’
Tanya Ednan-Laperouse and her husband Nadim founded the Natasha Allergy Research Foundation after the death of their daughter Natasha from adversely affecting food to which she was allergic. The charity focuses on raising education and awareness about food allergies and medical research.
Commenting on the research, the allergy campaigner said she is not ‘surprised’ at the extent of the mental health problems highlighted in this report.
“Allergies have been rising at an alarming rate in recent years, although support services have failed to keep up with demand. Research shows that in the 20 years to 2012, there was a 615% increase in admissions hospitals in the UK for anaphylaxis, “Ednan-Laperpuse told FoodNavigator.
“Many families tell us they are not getting the care, support and information they need when their child is diagnosed with a food allergy. This leaves them with no hope and can be very annoying and scary.This needs to change.
“When a parent sees a child with an anaphylactic reaction, they are watching their child die and it is a horrible experience, which scares many survivors.”
Ednan-Laperouse agreed that more research is needed to support people with food allergies and their families ‘so that they can lead such a normal and stress-free life.’
The research was led by UEA in collaboration with Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Source
‘Parental anxiety and posttraumatic stressors in pediatric food allergies’
Journal of Pediatric Psychology
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jpepsy/jsab012
Authors: Kate Roberts, Richard Meiser-Stedman, Alex Brightwell, Judith Young
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