Cognitive Behavioral Therapy May Ease Food Allergy-Related Anxiety in Children

THURSDAY, Oct. 13, 2022 (HealthDay News) — Cognitive behavioral therapy may reduce food allergy-related anxiety (FAA) for both children and parents, according to a study published online Sept. 23 in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology.

Katherine K. Dahlsgaard, Ph.D., from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and colleagues examined the feasibility, acceptability, and proof-of-concept of Food Allergy Bravery (FAB), a brief, novel, manualized cognitive behavioral-based intervention for anxiety in a clinical sample of children with FAA. The analysis included 10 children (aged 8 to 12 years) participating in a course delivered in a group format.

The researchers found that all families offered treatment completed the full course of FAB, attended at least five of six active treatment sessions, and rated the intervention as highly satisfactory. At posttreatment, all children were rated as very much improved or much improved on the Clinician Global Impression scale. There were significant decreases in anxiety severity scores on the Scale of Food Allergy Anxiety and the Scale of Child Anxiety-Related Emotional Disorders per both child and parent report. Similarly, there were significant improvements in scores on the Food Allergy Quality of Life Questionnaire-Parent Form, with gains maintained at follow-up.

“This manualized treatment was brief — just six sessions — and can be given in allergists’ offices by nurse practitioners or other providers,” a coauthor said in a statement.

One author disclosed financial ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.

Abstract/Full Text