Playing with the Kitchen Table: Using persuasive games to promote empathy for persons with anaphylactic food allergies

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-92
Author(s):  
Ryan Clement
Keyword(s):  
Food Allergy ◽  
Likert Scale ◽  
Food Allergies ◽  
Severe Anaphylaxis ◽  
Game Mechanics ◽  
Kitchen Table ◽  
Persuasive Games ◽  
The University

This article focuses on the design and preliminary experimentation of a tabletop game called Kitchen Table, created to encourage more empathy towards people with severe anaphylactic food allergies. To measure the effectiveness of this game, the study ‘Use of persuasive games to promote empathy for persons with food allergies’ was conducted at the University of Waterloo in collaboration with the Games Institute and Department of Geography and Environmental Management's Genetics, Environment and Therapies: Food Allergy Clinical Tolerance Studies (GET-FACTS) project. This study involved volunteers completing a Likert scale-based pre-playtest questionnaire, playing the game, and then completing a post-playtest questionnaire identical to the original. Their pre-playtest and post-playtest responses were compared to measure the degree to which attitudes changed as a result of playing the game. In the end, the game was demonstrated to encourage more empathy towards people with severe anaphylaxis through the production of emergent narrative from the interaction between the players, the game mechanics and the participatory community experience.

Young Adults’ Perspectives of Childhood Food Allergies: Implications for School Nurses

2021 ◽  
pp. 105984052110190
Author(s):  
Abigail Anderson ◽  
Elizabeth M. Combs ◽  
Sheila Hurst ◽  
Cynthia F. Corbett
Keyword(s):  
Young Adults ◽  
South Carolina ◽  
School Nurses ◽  
Food Allergies ◽  
School Age Children ◽  
School Age ◽  
University Of South Carolina ◽  
Social Lives ◽  
Qualitative Descriptive ◽  
The University

The primary goal of this study was to examine young adults’ perspectives about the effects of their food allergies (FAs) on their social lives from school-age to young adulthood. Young adults aged 18–21 ( n = 10) at the University of South Carolina were interviewed. A qualitative descriptive method to find themes and commonalities from transcribed interviews was used for data analysis. Identified themes were (1) feeling different and being isolated, (2) strategies for managing feeling different and being isolated, (3) strategies for managing safety, and (4) acceptance of myself and by others. School-age children attributed the school lunch allergy table as contributing to social isolation. Additionally, participants described feeling different and concerns about safety. Strategies to mitigate those experiences were identified by participants. Implications for children with FAs, their parents, school nurses, and other education and health professionals who work with children are presented.

scholarly journals Pathophysiological Roles of Neuro-Immune Interactions between Enteric Neurons and Mucosal Mast Cells in the Gut of Food Allergy Mice

Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 1586
Author(s):  
Tomoe Yashiro ◽  
Hanako Ogata ◽  
Syed Faisal Zaidi ◽  
Jaemin Lee ◽  
Shusaku Hayashi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Allergy ◽  
Mast Cells ◽  
Imaging System ◽  
Receptor Gene ◽  
Nerve Fibers ◽  
Enteric Neurons ◽  
Food Allergies ◽  
Adenosine A3 Receptor ◽  
Myenteric Neurons ◽  
Mucosal Mast Cells

Recently, the involvement of the nervous system in the pathology of allergic diseases has attracted increasing interest. However, the precise pathophysiological role of enteric neurons in food allergies has not been elucidated. We report the presence of functional high-affinity IgE receptors (FcεRIs) in enteric neurons. FcεRI immunoreactivities were observed in approximately 70% of cholinergic myenteric neurons from choline acetyltransferase-eGFP mice. Furthermore, stimulation by IgE-antigen elevated intracellular Ca2+ concentration in isolated myenteric neurons from normal mice, suggesting that FcεRIs are capable of activating myenteric neurons. Additionally, the morphological investigation revealed that the majority of mucosal mast cells were in close proximity to enteric nerve fibers in the colonic mucosa of food allergy mice. Next, using a newly developed coculture system of isolated myenteric neurons and mucosal-type bone-marrow-derived mast cells (mBMMCs) with a calcium imaging system, we demonstrated that the stimulation of isolated myenteric neurons by veratridine caused the activation of mBMMCs, which was suppressed by the adenosine A3 receptor antagonist MRE 3008F20. Moreover, the expression of the adenosine A3 receptor gene was detected in mBMMCs. Therefore, in conclusion, it is suggested that, through interaction with mucosal mast cells, IgE-antigen-activated myenteric neurons play a pathological role in further exacerbating the pathology of food allergy.

scholarly journals Addressing Common Misconceptions in Food Allergy: A Review

Children ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 497
Author(s):  
Aikaterini Anagnostou
Keyword(s):  
Food Allergy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Specific Ige ◽  
Oral Immunotherapy ◽  
Food Allergies ◽  
Allergy Prevention ◽  
Diagnosis And Management ◽  
Skin Prick Tests ◽  
Food Specific Ige ◽  
Common Misconceptions

Background: Food allergies are common, affecting 1 in 13 school children in the United States and their prevalence is increasing. Many misconceptions exist with regards to food allergy prevention, diagnosis and management. Objective: The main objective of this review is to address misconceptions with regards to food allergies and discuss the optimal, evidence-based approach for patients who carry this diagnosis. Observations: Common misconceptions in terms of food allergy prevention include beliefs that breastfeeding and delayed introduction of allergenic foods prevent the development of food allergies. In terms of diagnosis, statements such as ‘larger skin prick tests or/and higher levels of food-specific IgE can predict the severity of food-induced allergic reactions’, or ‘Tryptase is always elevated in food-induced anaphylaxis’ are inaccurate. Additionally, egg allergy is not a contraindication for receiving the influenza vaccine, food-allergy related fatalities are rare and peanut oral immunotherapy, despite reported benefits, is not a cure for food allergies. Finally, not all infants with eczema will develop food allergies and epinephrine auto-injectors may unfortunately be both unavailable and underused in food-triggered anaphylaxis. Conclusions and relevance: Healthcare professionals must be familiar with recent evidence in the food allergy field and avoid common misunderstandings that may negatively affect prevention, diagnosis and management of this chronic disease.

scholarly journals Food allergy: knowledge level of food handlers at school canteens

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
M Liz Martins ◽  
I Estrela
Keyword(s):  
Food Allergy ◽  
Public Health Problem ◽  
School Level ◽  
Food Allergies ◽  
Surveillance Systems ◽  
Knowledge Level ◽  
Food Handlers ◽  
High School Level ◽  
Number Of Children ◽  
High Knowledge

Abstract Background Food allergy becomes a public health problem whose prevalence in children is increasing. Due to the daily number of children using school canteens, these settings play an important role on allergic reactions prevention, being essential to know the knowledge level of food handlers. Methods This study focused on Portuguese schools of the city of Porto, that daily offer 6500 lunches to children aged 3 to 10 years old. The study was performed in all school canteens having children with food allergies (n = 25). To evaluate knowledge level on food allergy, a questionnaire was applied to all food handlers responsible for meals serving, considering hot topics related to food allergy and cross contamination practices. Each question was scored: 0 (lack); 1 (correct); -1 (incorrect), ranged 0 to 20 points. The knowledge level was converted in a 4-level scale: <50% (non-acceptable); 50-74% (acceptable); 75-89% (good); 90-100% (very good). Results Despite of 44.9% of food handlers presented a good level knowledge, it was observed that 38.8% of participants showed non-acceptable values. The knowledge mean level was 11.9 (±4.1) points. A high knowledge was observed for cooks (13.8±3.0) and canteen managers (20.0±0.0) (p = 0.006), as well as, for a high school level. Only 36.7% of participants had training on food allergy, with no influence on knowledge level (0.610). Participants having training on food safety has a higher knowledge level (13.0±3.9) than food handlers having no training (9.8±3.7) (p = 0.008). The majority of respondents showed to know food handling good practices when exposed to case studies related to food allergy. Conclusions A positive level of knowledge on food allergies was observed for the majority of food handlers. Nevertheless, a high number of participants had no training on food allergy. This work has a potential impact on children's health, awareness for the need to implement regular training actions and surveillance systems at school canteens. Key messages A large number of food handlers showed non-acceptable knowledge levels and no training on food allergy. Professional category influenced knowledge, being important the motivation and training of all employees.

scholarly journals Mothers of children with food allergies report poorer perceived life status which may be explained by limited career choices

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tara Lynn Mary Frykas ◽  
Michael Golding ◽  
Elissa M. Abrams ◽  
Elinor Simons ◽  
Jennifer Lisa Penner Protudjer
Keyword(s):  
Food Allergy ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Career Choices ◽  
Food Allergies ◽  
Allergic Child ◽  
Intangible Costs ◽  
Statistics Canada ◽  
Using Data

AbstractPediatric food allergy is associated with direct, indirect and intangible costs. However, it remains unclear if intangible costs of pediatric food allergy influence parental career choices. Using data from 63 parents whose children had been diagnosed by a pediatric allergist with food allergy, we sought to (a) establish perceived life status of families with a food allergic child, and (b) to describe any career limitations viewed as attributable to food allergy. Compared to responding parents whose children had one to two food allergies, those with three or more food allergies had significantly poorer perceived life status (ß − 0.74; 95%CI − 1.41; − 0.07; p < 0.05). Overall, 14.3% of parents (all mothers) reported career limitations due to food allergy. Two of the 7 mothers (28.6%) who reported career limitations due to their child's food allergy fell below Statistics Canada cut-off for low-income, after tax dollars (LIM-AT). One of the three mothers who had changed jobs because of their child's food allergy was below the LIM-AT. No fathers reported food allergy-related career limitations. In conclusion, mothers of children with multiple food allergies reported worse perceived life status that may be partly explained by food allergy-related career limitations.

scholarly journals Causes of Allergies and Diagnosis and Treatment

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 18-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saman Aiubi ◽  
Nasroallah Moradi Kor ◽  
Omid Lakzaie Azar ◽  
Fatemeh Asadi Rahmani ◽  
Zeinab Hajian Berenjestanaki ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Allergy ◽  
Systematic Reviews ◽  
The Body ◽  
Food Allergies ◽  
Current Time ◽  
Assessment Scores ◽  
Trigger Time ◽  
Ovid Medline ◽  
Overview Of Systematic Reviews ◽  
Time Of Year

Allergies are diseases of the immune system that cause an overreaction to substances called "allergens." Allergies are grouped by the kind of trigger, time of year or where symptoms appear on the body: indoor and outdoor allergies (also called "hay fever," "seasonal," "perennial" or "nasal" allergies), food allergies, latex allergies, insect allergies, skin allergies and eye allergies. People who have allergies can live healthy and active lives. The search strategy has been devised on ovid medline and then adapted for the other databases (see Additional file 1 for full search strategies). In all cases the databases will be searched from 1 January 2000 to 30 September 2012, and limited to Europe based on the definition provided by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).The resulting quality assessment scores are given alongside other study parameters in three tables. We assessed the systematic reviews based on the type of intervention or subject assessed for the prevention of food allergy or food sensitization. In this overview of systematic reviews concerning the etiology and prevention of food allergy, we identified 14 eligible publications. This systematic review will provide the most up to date estimates of the frequency of food allergy in Europe. Given the presumed increase in IgE mediated food allergy in the recent past, there is much interest in identifying the causes of food allergy and primary preventive strategies. These advances are creating the opportunities for novel therapies for food allergy. However, at the current time, the only treatment is avoidance.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/ijls.v9i5.12701

Food allergies are associated with increased disease activity in multiple sclerosis

2018 ◽  
Vol 90 (6) ◽  
pp. 629-635 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rami Fakih ◽  
Camilo Diaz-Cruz ◽  
Alicia S Chua ◽  
Cindy Gonzalez ◽  
Brian C Healy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Multiple Sclerosis ◽  
Food Allergy ◽  
Disease Activity ◽  
Food Allergies ◽  
Cumulative Number ◽  
Biological Mechanisms ◽  
Longitudinal Investigation ◽  
Disability Status ◽  
History Of ◽  
Self Administered Questionnaire

ObjectiveThe association between allergy and multiple sclerosis (MS) is still unclear. In our study, we assessed the association between a self-reported history of allergic conditions with MS clinical and MRI disease activity.MethodsA subset of 1349 patients enrolled in the Comprehensive Longitudinal Investigation of Multiple Sclerosis at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital (CLIMB) study completed a self-administered questionnaire on environmental, food and drug allergies. Patients were distributed among four allergy groups: (1) environmental, (2) food, (3) drug, (4) no known allergies (NKA). Clinical (number of attacks, expanded disability status scale (EDSS), MS severity score (MSSS)) and radiological variables (presence of gadolinium-enhancing lesions and lesion count), and their associations with the different allergy groups or those with NKA, were assessed.ResultsThe food allergy group had a 1.38 times higher rate for cumulative number of attacks compared with the NKA group (P=0.0062); this difference remained significant in the adjusted analysis (relapse rate ratio 1.27, P=0.0305). The food allergy group showed more than twice the likelihood (OR 2.53, P=0.0096) of having gadolinium-enhancing lesions on MRI. The environmental and drug allergy groups did not show significant differences when compared with the NKA group. The EDSS and MSSS were not affected by any type of allergy.ConclusionsMS patients with food allergy had more relapses and a higher likelihood of gadolinium-enhancing lesions compared with patients with no known allergy. Future prospective studies are needed to confirm our findings and investigate underlying biological mechanisms, which may unveil new therapeutic and preventative strategies for MS.

scholarly journals Food allergy in infants assessed in two German birth cohorts 10 years after the EuroPrevall Study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniela Roehrl ◽  
Susanne Brandstetter ◽  
Linda Siziba ◽  
Dietrich Rothenbacher ◽  
Vincent Gaertner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Allergy ◽  
Food Challenge ◽  
Turn Of The Century ◽  
Food Allergies ◽  
Birth Cohorts ◽  
High Prevalence ◽  
The Status ◽  
Health Studies ◽  
Exposure During Pregnancy ◽  
Personalized Health

Background: The prevalence of food allergies (FA) in children increased rapidly at the turn of the century. The EuroPrevall study identified Germany as a country with very high prevalence of FA at that time. Using two large German birth cohorts we provide an update of the status quo ten years later. Methods: KUNO Kids and Ulm SPATZ Health studies are two ongoing prospective birth cohorts. Information on FA was obtained by questionnaires at birth and after 6, 12 and 24 months. Univariate logistic regression analyses were performed to investigate risk factors during pregnancy, birth and early childhood. Results: In 1139 and 1006 children from KUNO Kids and SPATZ the point prevalence of parent-reported FA symptoms at the ages of 1 and 2 years was 13.2% and 13.9 % in KUNO Kids. Doctor’s diagnosed FA at 1 and 2 years was 2.4% and 2.7% in KUNO Kids and 2.3% and 3% in SPATZ. Cow’s milk and citrus fruits were most frequently suspected by parents to cause FA symptoms. Atopy in the child was associated with a higher frequency of FA at any time, whereas atopy in first degree relatives was only associated with FA at year 1. Smoke exposure during pregnancy was a risk for FA at age 2. Conclusion: The prevalence of food allergy seems to have plateaued in the last 10 years in Germany. FA is often suspected by parents but only rarely diagnosed by oral food challenge. Risk factor analysis may help to establish personalized health approaches.

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