FAIRFAX, Va. -- A survey of teens and pre-teens with food allergies and their parents indicates that social ramifications have much to do with how young people manage their illness as they approach young adulthood. The report, Parent and Adolescent Perceptions on Food Allergy, was presented by the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN) at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Asthma, Allergy & Immunology on March 11, .

FAAN independently surveyed 37 parent/child pairs in attendance at three food allergy conferences last year. The findings revealed that most teens (94 percent) consider social isolation the worst part about having food allergies, unlike their parents, who were more concerned about issues of fear/death.

"Research shows that most fatalities due to food allergy occur between the ages of 10 and 19," said Anne Munoz-Furlong, founder and CEO of FAAN. "This survey illuminates the reasons why that is. What we begin to see during the transition from childhood to young adulthood -- a time of moving out from under the wing of mom and dad and deeper into peer circles -- is a shift from fear of an allergic reaction to fear of not fitting in socially because of the food allergy," she said.

"Parents, teachers, friends and health care providers need to be aware that adolescents are at highest risk of death from a food-induced allergic reaction," according to Sally Noone, co-investigator of the study and clinical research coordinator at the Jaffe Food Allergy Institute, Mount Sinai School of Medicine. "Education about risk-taking behaviors and the importance of emergency therapy are crucial in this age group," she said.

"The importance of communication -- especially between parent and child -- must be stressed," said Munoz-Furlong. "The disparity between the safety concerns of the parents and the social concerns of the teens in the study can only be breached when families talk about these issues and decide together how to manage them."

Among the findings of the study, which concludes that teens may be at higher risk for fatal food-allergic reactions because they are reluctant to use medications, is that 50 percent reported being "harassed" about their allergies, and 46 percent said their allergies curtailed social activities up to half the time.

The Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing public awareness of, providing education about, and advancing scientific research on food allergies and anaphylaxis.

Source: Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network