Chapter 7: Counseling Food Allergic Children and Adolescents with Diverse Identities

Food allergies (FAs) are a medical condition caused by an overreaction of the body’s immune system to a food protein, or allergen (Food Allergy Research & Education [FARE], n.d.-b). These reactions occur whenever one is exposed to an allergen (Messina & Venter, 2020). FAs are classified as either immunoglobulin-E (IgE) mediated or non-immunoglobulin-E mediated, with IgE mediated FAs occurring within 2 hours of ingestion, and non-IgE mediated FAs occurring after at least 2 hours and up to 48 hours after ingestion. Research shows that most children experience IgE-mediated FA reactions (Sicherer & Sampson, 2014). It is important to note that FAs are separate from food intolerances, such as lactose intolerance, in that food intolerances do not involve immune-mediated reactions and thus have a different etiology (Messina & Venter, 2020).