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Food allergies don’t just bring the fear of anaphylaxis. They also bring unique social challenges that are often overlooked. In this episode, I sit down with psychologist clinician and researcher Dr. Melissa Engel, whose recently published paper introduces a new model for understanding social anxiety related to food allergies.

We discuss why this distinction matters, especially for adolescents navigating peer relationships, independence, and identity alongside food allergies. Dr. Engel shares her hopes that this framework will inspire better screening, more targeted treatments, and a broader acknowledgment of the emotional toll that living with food allergies can take.

If you’ve ever felt that the mental health aspects of food allergies aren’t fully recognized, this conversation will validate your experience and point toward a future where research and care finally catch up to what families and patients already know.

Read Dr. Engel's paper here:
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12400901/

Center for Food Allergy And Asthma Research (CFAAR):
https://www.feinberg.northwestern.edu/sites/cfaar/index.html

Episode 32 with Dr. Katherine Dahlsgaard mentioned in our discussion:
https://dontfeedthefear.buzzsprout.com/2371319/episodes/17506930-building-bravery-tackling-allergy-anxiety-with-dr-katherine-dahlsgaard

Special thanks to Kyle Dine for permission to use his song The Doghouse for the podcast theme!
www.kyledine.com

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-thefoodallergypsychologist.com
-Instagram: @thefoodallergypsychologist
-Facebook: Dr. Amanda Whitehouse, Food Allergy Anxiety Psychologist
-welcome@dramandawhitehouse.com