Online Public Lecture Explores Impact of Food Allergies on Children and Families, Highlights Need for Psychological Support

Aston Institute of Health and Neurodevelopment (IHN) will host a livestreamed public lecture on the impact that food allergy has on people’s lives and the global unmet need for psychological support on Monday 10 June 2024.

Dr Rebecca Knibb will be discussing insights from the Global Access to Psychological Services (GAPS) study, a multinational collaboration of researchers, clinicians, patients and patient organisations, who have been exploring psychological support needs and people’s experiences of healthcare services across more than 20 countries worldwide.

Dr Knibb is a chartered psychologist and practitioner health psychologist, a reader in psychology at Aston University and programme director for the MSc Health Psychology online programme. Her research interests include the health-related quality of life and mental wellbeing of children, adolescents and parents who are managing long term conditions, particular allergic conditions and asthma.

The lecture is part of the Molecules to Minds livestreamed lecture series, which is restarting after a break. Molecules to Minds is aimed at all interested parties, be they members of the public affected by the topic being discussed, or specialist clinicians. The name comes from IHN’s research remit, which spans the full breath of neurodevelopmental research, all the way from individual molecules to whole minds.

Dr Knibb said:

“There is a global unmet need for psychological support for patients and families managing food allergy. Our GAPS study has shown that around 80% of adults, parents and children managing food allergy report related psychological distress, yet fewer than one in five are able to access any support, with cost the biggest barrier.”