Peniamina Rana Lori, Bremer Philip, Conner Tamlin S, Mirosa Miranda
University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand.
University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
Qual Health Res. 2014 Jul;24(7):933-945. doi: 10.1177/1049732314539733. Epub 2014 Jun 17.
Food allergies are a growing issue, yet society's understanding of how individuals' lives are affected is limited. We conducted four focus groups with food-allergic adults in New Zealand to gain an in-depth understanding of the issues that impacted their quality of life. Key themes identified included allergen-free eating issues, health care system issues, costs of having a food allergy, effects on well-being, external influences (e.g., others' lack of awareness), and internal influences (personal growth and adaptation). The unmet needs of food-allergic adults led to risk taking, increased stress, and social isolation. A lack of awareness in others (including medical professionals, food service providers, and the general public) had a negative impact, suggesting that an intervention targeting awareness would be beneficial. Adaptation, particularly in terms of assertiveness and organizational skills, was important for coping, so we suggest training in these skills be made available for food-allergic patients.
食物过敏问题日益严重，但社会对于其如何影响个人生活的了解仍很有限。我们在新西兰对成年食物过敏患者开展了四个焦点小组讨论，以深入了解影响他们生活质量的问题。确定的关键主题包括无过敏原饮食问题、医疗保健系统问题、食物过敏的成本、对幸福感的影响、外部影响（如他人缺乏认知）以及内部影响（个人成长与适应）。成年食物过敏患者未得到满足的需求导致冒险行为、压力增加和社交孤立。他人（包括医疗专业人员、食品服务提供者和普通公众）缺乏认知产生了负面影响，这表明针对提高认知的干预措施将大有裨益。适应，尤其是在自信和组织能力方面，对于应对至关重要，因此我们建议为食物过敏患者提供这些技能的培训。
