“It’s a Permanent Struggle to Manage It Really”: Psychological Burden and Coping Strategies of Adults Living With Food Allergy

Abstract

Food allergy (FA) is a potentially life-threatening condition which is associated with poor quality of life and psychological distress in patients and caregivers. Although FA is often seen as a condition that affects children, increasing numbers of adults have FA, either as a condition they have grown up with or they were diagnosed as an adult. No recent research has explored the lived experiences of adults with FA and how they manage this condition. In response, this study aimed to qualitatively assess the current lived experiences of adults in the UK with FA, and how they manage this condition. Adults aged 18 years or over, with medically diagnosed FA, living in the UK were recruited through patient organisations and interviewed (n = 22). Data were analysed using template analysis. Two main themes were identified from the data. The first theme explores the influence of FA on the participants’ lives, in particular on their ‘psychological’ and ‘social’ well-being. The second theme unpacks the strategies participants employed to cope with and manage their FA, specifically participants’ deployment of ‘avoidance’, ‘control’, ‘self-monitoring’, and ‘adaptation’ to manage their FA and their anxieties around it. Clearly, FA has a profound, ongoing effect on the lives of adults. Few adults in this study were able to access any support to manage their FA and accompanying anxieties. Ways in which effective support can be made available to adults with FA must be identified and implemented.