Are Caregivers Adequately Prepared to Manage Food Allergies?

TOPLINE:

Caregivers of children and teens with food allergies may have significant gaps in their knowledge and preparedness to manage the condition, a survey showed. Their ability to recognize and treat anaphylaxis may be limited.

METHODOLOGY:

• Researchers conducted a cross-sectional survey via the SurveyMonkey platform from December 2024 to April 2025, yielding 129 responses from caregivers of children and adolescents with food allergies (age range, 0-18 years) evaluated at the pediatric allergy outpatient services of two university hospitals in Italy.
• Respondents completed a structured questionnaire assessing their self-perceived knowledge, ability to recognize allergic symptoms, preventive behaviors, and emergency preparedness.

TAKEAWAY:

• Only 9.3% of caregivers reported being very informed about managing their child’s food allergy, whereas 13.2% considered themselves not informed at all.
• Just 16% said they were familiar with all food-allergy symptoms, whereas 14% said they didn’t know any.
• About a quarter of caregivers reported being able to distinguish between mild allergic reactions and severe reactions such as anaphylaxis, and 19.4% reported knowing exactly how to respond to anaphylaxis, including the proper use of an epinephrine auto-injector and when to contact emergency services.
• Only 11.6% of caregivers reported always having an epinephrine auto-injector on hand, even though it is the first-line treatment for anaphylaxis.

IN PRACTICE:

“Integrating structured parental education into routine clinical care may enhance long-term outcomes and reduce the risk of severe allergic reactions,” the authors of the study wrote.

SOURCE:

Sara Manti, MD, PhD, with the University of Messina, Messina, Italy, was the corresponding author of the study, which was published online on July 22 in Nutrients.

LIMITATIONS:

The cross-sectional design and self-reported nature of the survey may have introduced bias. Some patients had not yet been prescribed an epinephrine auto-injector at the time of enrollment.

DISCLOSURES:

The authors reported having no conflicts of interest.

This article was created using several editorial tools, including AI, as part of the process. Human editors reviewed this content before publication.