A Survey-Based Study to Assess Caregiver Understanding of the Link Between Atopic Dermatitis and Food Allergy

Allergy and dermatology societies do not recommend food avoidance for pediatric atopic dermatitis (AD) management, as it is ineffective and increases the risk of food allergy. However, we hypothesized that many caregivers restrict their child's intake of allergenic foods to treat AD and aimed to characterize diet modifications and motivating factors in this cross-sectional observational study. Caregivers of young children with AD were asked to complete a survey in this single-center study assessing AD severity, allergic comorbidities, diet modifications, and sources of recommendations. Our results indicated that many caregivers hold the belief that diet impacts AD (42% of study population) and implemented food avoidance (38% of study population), often at the recommendation of primary care providers (50% of study population), highlighting the need for improved counseling on AD management as it relates to diet, particularly given the known risk of food allergy development with food avoidance.