Caregivers of children with no food allergy--their experiences and perception of food allergy.

BACKGROUND

Food allergy (FA) is one of the most important health issues in schoolchildren. Although one of the most common places where pediatric anaphylaxis occurs is the home of a peer, the perception and experiences of caregivers who do not have a child with FA are unclear.

METHODS

An anonymous paper-based questionnaire was distributed to caregivers of FA children (FA caregivers) in the National Center for Child Health and Development and caregivers of non-FA children (non-FA caregivers) in public school in Tokyo. We examined the perception and experiences of FA among three groups: Group 1, non-FA caregiver who had not witnessed adverse reactions and near-miss events related to FA; Group 2, non-FA caregivers who had witnessed adverse reactions and near-miss events related to FA; and Group 3, caregivers who had a child with FA.

RESULTS

Epinephrine auto-injector was recognized by 43.6% non-FA caregivers. Only 2.8% of non-FA caregivers had experienced a child being bullied, harassed, or refused by a school because of FA. There were more caregivers in Group 2 who thought they could take the appropriate action if they witnessed a child with adverse response to causal food than in Group 1 (p < 0.05). All groups felt anxious over adverse events related to FA.

CONCLUSION

The experiences and perception of FA were lacking among non-FA caregivers. Therefore, it is also important to provide FA education for non-FA caregivers to improve the quality of life of FA children.