According to a recent study, children who have food allergies may be at a higher risk of childhood anxiety.
-The team of researchers studied 80 children aged between 4 to12 years old with and without food allergy and their caregivers from urban paediatric outpatient clinics in the Bronx, New York.
-The researchers controlled for an asthma diagnosis in the children.
-Among the children with a food allergy, 57% reported having symptoms of anxiety compared to 48% of children without a food allergy.
-The results suggest that food allergy is particularly linked to elevated social anxiety and fear of social rejection and humiliation.
-Management of food allergy can be expensive both in terms of food shopping, meal preparation, and the cost of epinephrine auto-injectors, which expire annually. These demands could result in higher levels of anxiety for those with fewer financial resources and further heighten anxiety symptoms in children and their caregivers.
-Researchers are also of the view that some children may experience increased social anxiety about being “different” from other children depending on their age and how food allergy is managed by adults in a particular setting.
Source: Pediatrics Journal