[AlCzervik]

Pretty good thread going on at another board I frequent about this...decent back and forth about whether a school should ban PBJ sandwiches because some kids may bite it if they get near peanuts. Some say that's it's unfair to ban a whole line of foods for a couple of "needy" kids, while others say it is so endemic now that you have to adjust and you would understand if it was your little buckaroo at risk. What say you? And what the heck is causing this? I can't remember one kid back in the '80's with a peanut allergy. I'm sure dukey has some sweet youtube vids to explain it.

[Arsenal]

If the economy really starts to get worse then you might see this "ban" repeal itself. Peanut Butter = cheap protein. Personally I think some of the over obsessed/caffeinated PTA soccer moms should have to walk to the school from their McMansion 10 miles away before they can gripe about PBJs at schools. If your kid "actually" has the allergy then educate him/her about what will happen if you eat someone's food that has peanuts in it. Oh and an EPI pen as well.

Arsenal

[alokin]

We are living in Australia and there are so many allergies around I really seldom heard of in Europe. Milk, Eggs Wheat. Imagine a Wheat allergy in Italy, that's ridiculous.
I bet the allergies are not coming from the food itself but from the way it is prepared.
Bread it full of whatever stuff, but there should be wheat, water salt.
I can't pass an bread isle in the supermarket without thinking "it stinks"

Around the houses there are lots more poisons used like pest control, ant killer, bleach, household desinfectants etc.

If you would band all allergenes from school you kids would not eat anything there.

[Twilight]

Peanut allergies are almost impossible to trigger by proximity alone. I do not think sufferers avoid supermarkets in case a particle wafts over from the bakery aisle. The only case I have heard of involved recycled air in an airliner cabin. My BS detector activates.

[Ludi]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('alokin', '
')Around the houses there are lots more poisons used like pest control, ant killer, bleach, household desinfectants etc.

.

[mobil1]

My 6 yr old son has peanut allergies. He's never had a life threating episode, but on 2 occasions my wife thought he did and we called an ambulance.

On one occasion, the doctor warned her that giving him the Epipen shot was MORE dangerous then not, in this circumstance. I read the Epipen instructions and other things and find no such warnings. It's supposed to be almost harmless, even when not needed.


IMO, my wife, like many people, are too paranoid about nut allergies. OTOH, better safe than sorry when it's your kif, right ?

My son may not be that sensitive. Only evidence so far is allergy test results. I'm sure some are more at risk. But how do we measure that risk and does it REALLY require a ban on peanut products in the school ?

I'm of the opnion that education and respect are better than bans on certain products.

[MidwesternMom]

I have heard of this, one of my aunt's son's goes to a school where peanuts/products are banned. I too, find it odd. I don't remember all these allergies when i was a kid, people i am 25, so this was not that long ago. I have heard of many reasons for the increase in allergies, mainly environmental containaments, cleaners, pesticides, vaccines, soaps, preservatives, dyes, the lists go on and on of things kids are exposed to now that they weren't even 20 or 30 years ago. I have even heard that if a person has peanut allergies in the family they shouldn't eat peanut products when pregnant. I just don't know about this, but i assume it is the environment.

[SchroedingersCat]

Peanuts harbor aflatoxin. This is one of the deadliest substances on earth. They have small amounts, but it might contribute to allergies. Also, like all crops, peanut varieties have been selected for marketability, not lack of allergic response.

Some researchers think that the use of soy products in infants or the use of peanut-oil containing lotions may have something to do with the development of peanut allergies.

There does seem to be more of it. And of course in our litigious society schools are going to take the least risky path.

[mystiek]

You guys have made some really great points about peanut allergies. I have wondered if its the way we process our foods, we're not ingesting enough dirt like Ludi said (I'm serious), our bodies are so bombarded with environmental contaminants that it weakens our system. I have patients with different food allergies, peanuts are the most common. Some of them require Epipens-I have seen some pretty scarey reactions. The problem I have with banning PBJ sandwiches is what about the child that has an egg allergy or strawberry allergy, etc, etc. Pretty soon there will be nothing left for anybody to eat. We routinely fill out forms for the school to have on file if a child has a dietary restriction and recommend that the school has epipens available if the child "bites" into a forbidden food. I know my children's school serves PBJ because my 5 year old usually has half of it smeared all over his shirt when he comes home.