Cognitive behavioral therapy may reduce food allergy-related anxiety (FAA) for both children and parents, according to a study published in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Katherine K. Dahlsgaard, PhD, 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 children (aged 8-12) participating in a course delivered in a group format. All families who were 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 post-treatment, all children were rated as very much improved or much
improved on the Clinician Global Impression scale. Significant decreases occurred 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, significant improvements occurred in scores on the Food Allergy Quality of Life Questionnaire-Parent Form, with gains maintained at follow-up.
