Korean J Community Nutr. 2017 Aug;22(4):298-306. Korean.
Published online Aug 31, 2017.
Copyright © 2017 The Korean Society of Community Nutrition
Original Article

Food Allergy Awareness and Nutritional Management by Preschooler's Faculty Members of Child Care Facilities

Soo Bin Kim and Jung Hee Kim
    • Department of Food and Nutrition, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul Women's University, Seoul, Korea.
Received August 07, 2017; Revised August 23, 2017; Accepted August 24, 2017.

This is an Open-Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

Objectives

The purpose of this study was to investigate the awareness and nutritional management of food allergy (FA) by preschooler's faculty members in child care centers.

Methods

A questionnaire survey was conducted among faculty members of child care centers in Seoul. The questionnaire was designed to identify the prevalence of food allergies, requirements of food allergy support and differences in food management depending on the presence of allergic diseases. After excluding incomplete responses, the data of 171 faculties in 137 child care centers (95.0%) were used for statistical analysis.

Results

According to the 137 collected questionnaires, 96 child care centers asked parents about their children's allergic disease and 151 children from 66 child care centers had food allergies. A reported 89 children from 43 child care centers had food restrictions. However, 9 child care centers (21.0%) were not aware of food restriction for children with food allergies. Only 6 child care centers (14.0%) supplied substitute foods with the same amount and type of nutrients. Forty eight faculties (28.1%) received training about food allergies. Although there were some differences according to institution type, most of the faculty members wanted food allergy-related support.

Conclusions

This study identified a lack of food allergy training for faculty members in child care centers. For proper management, it is necessary for faculty members of child care centers to be educated on overall food allergies. Food allergy-related support such as menus without allergenic ingredients, guidelines on emergency care for food allergies and anaphylaxis should be provided for faculty members in child care centers.

Keywords
food allergy; preschooler; nutritional management; child care facilities

Figures

Fig. 1
Meal management for preschooler with food allergy in child care facilities

Tables

Table 1
General characteristic of child care facilities and their food allergy management

Table 2
Food allergy management by child care facilities

Table 3
Food allergens in preschoolers reported by parents and child care facilitiess

Table 4
Symptoms of food allergy in preschoolers reported by parents and child care facilities

Table 5
Care and management of food allergies by child care facilities

Table 6
Needs for subject-specific education on food allergy of child care facilities

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