Written by Catherine Saxelby
on Friday, 16 November 2012.
Tagged: allergies, guides, healthy cooking, healthy eating, healthy lifestyle, peanut allergy, tips
Peanut allergy is one of the most serious food allergies because of the danger of developing the dangerous, and sometimes fatal, condition of anaphylaxis. In the USA, it is estimated that 100 people die each year from peanut allergy. Because of the potential loss of life, it is crucial we are all aware of foods that can trigger anaphylaxis such as peanuts. This applies to anyone looking after children particularly day care centre staff, teachers, parents and even grandparents.
Around 1 in every 200 children will develop an anaphylactic reaction to food with around 1 in 5 suffering a severe reaction or worse. The main offenders are:
• egg
• peanut
• milk
• fish
• soy
• wheat
Of these, most will grow out of allergies to milk, egg, soy and wheat but peanut and fish allergies tend to be more severe and persist into adulthood.
Peanut allergy is on the increase in all Western countries for reasons researchers don't fully understand. In about 50 per cent of cases, there is also an allergy to another nut notably cashews, walnuts and almonds.
Children who have already had one allergic reaction are encouraged to carry with them a bee sting kit - an emergency syringe of adrenaline/epinephrine to counteract the allergic swelling and tightness of breath in case of accidental ingestion.
There is no cure. Unlike other allergies, children do not ‘grow out of' peanut allergy. They have to strictly avoid them for life. Take these steps to avoid your child's exposure to peanut:
1. Be careful at home as well as eating out
2. Read all labels and learn about food
3. Be assertive and educate others
4. Plan trips/outings and take a supply of safe food
5. Ensure others can easily recognise you or your child as being at risk
6. Teach your child how to recognise peanuts and the foods that may contain hidden sources
7. Never coerce a child with a food allergy to eat a food he or she rejects
8. Learn how to use an Epipen (emergency adrenaline - see picture) and have a crisis plan
Nuts are often found in foods least expected. Check below for some of the obvious and not so obvious sources of peanuts in food:
Reading labels can be a life saving tool. You must check:
1. The list of ingredients for PEANUTS.
2. A warning statement saying ‘May contain peanuts' or ‘May contain traces of nuts'. These warnings have been appearing on food packs over the last few years and are designed to alert consumers to the possible presence of an allergen that is not a true ingredient but has found its way accidentally into the food in trace amounts. This can happen in two main ways:
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