Undergraduate Psychology Student Stetson University DeLand, Florida
Five percent of adults in the US have food allergies (Warren, 2016). Food allergy is a chronic sometimes life-threatening condition that requires strict avoidance of the allergen and constant awareness of the ingredients in each food that is consumed. Food allergies are related to poorer quality of life and increased anxiety in children and adolescents (e.g., Protudjer et al., 2016, Thörnqvist et al, 2019). We examined anxiety and disordered eating symptoms in a sample of young adults with food allergies.
We recruited 117 participants via social media and the Asthma and Allergy Network’s newsletter. Eligible participants were between the ages of 18 and 25 and had to have an allergy to peanuts, tree nuts, eggs, soy, milk, wheat, fish, and/or shellfish. Participants completed an anonymous online survey that included items assessing food allergy symptoms, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7; Spitzer et al., 1999), the Social Interaction Phobia Scale (SIPS, Carleton et al., 2009), the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26; Garner et al., 1992), and Nine-Item Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder Screen (NIAS; Zickgraf & Ellis, 2018).
Participants had a mean age of 21.5 (SD = 1.9). The sample included 63 women (53.8%), 49 men (41.9%), and 5 participants who identified as transgender or non-binary (4.2%). 73 participants identified as White/Caucasian (62.4%), 24 as Black/African American (20.5%), 9 as Asian American/Pacific Islander (7.7%), 7 as Hispanic/Latino (6.0%), 3 as Native American (2.6%), and one participant who described their identity another way (0.9%).
Preliminary data analyses were based on three indicators of allergy severity. The first was whether participants reported one food allergy or more than one. There were no differences in GAD-7 or SIPS scores between participants who had one food allergy and those who had more than one. Participants who had more than one food allergy scored lower on the EAT-26 than those who had more than one food allergy, t(57.80) = 1.95, p = .03). Participants who reported more than one food allergy scored higher on the NIAS picky eating subscale than those who reported one food allergy, t(110) = 3.00, p = .002. The second indicator of allergy severity was whether participants needed to carry an epinephrine autoinjector. Participants who carry an autoinjector scored higher on the GAD-7 than those who did not, t(110) = 2.47, p = .008. Participants carry an autoinjector also scored higher on the SIPS than those who did not, t(104) = 1.73, p = .04. There were no differences in EAT-26 scores or NIAS scores between participants who carry an autoinjector and those who do not. The third indicator of allergy severity was an emergency room visit in the last year. There were no significant differences in GAD-7 scores, SIPS scores, or NIAS scores between participants who visited the ER in the last year and those who did not. Participants who visited the ER in the last year scored higher on the EAT-26 than those who did not, t(63.09) = -2.23, p = .02. Additional analyses will examine whether specific food allergy symptoms (e.g., gastrointestinal symptoms, skin/oral mucosa symptoms) are associated with anxiety and disordered eating. Results of this study can inform interventions to help young adults cope effectively with food allergies.
