Do you know anyone with a peanut allergy?
It could be a family member, yourself, maybe a friend at work or just an acquaintance living somewhere there in town. Every single day this person, when in the general public, usually feels ostracized, especially when it becomes common knowledge about their allergy.
So very many people are angry with any individual with an allergy to peanut butter because of the recent push to get many areas designated as peanut free zones. Whether this is at a baseball park, on an airplane, in a school or classroom, at the local amusement park or zoo... the list is almost endless where the subject does arise, should we require a peanut free zone within these boundaries?
The debate is fueled mainly because of tradition. Tradition has always been an important part of furnishing peanuts or peanut butter as a snack, as an ingredient, as a food source for the animals at the local zoo etc.. Now, the administration of each has approached the viability of removing peanuts in any of its various forms.
The common cry "Why? Why do we the majority have to suffer for only about 1 or 2% of the population which has a problem. Make the problem theirs, not ours."
But that slim 1 or 2%, translated into numbers, means approximately a million people are striving every day to stay safe from the proximity of a peanut!
People unfamiliar with this allergen have no clue what the peanut allergic must do to just navigate through a typical day - safely. For a person with a severe allergy, just the act of going from sunup to sunset is cause for celebration. They actually have managed to navigate through one more day safely.
Does that sound like an exaggeration to many of you?
Unfortunately, with a severe peanut allergy and a case of accidental exposure, without the proper medications being in close proximity AND a good samaritan being there to inject that medication, this individual could be dead in under 5 minutes.
Therefore, to all of you unfamiliar with a peanut allergy, this individual is not asking for special treatment - they are just asking for the right to stay alive. Some common troublesome areas for them could be:
It could be a family member, yourself, maybe a friend at work or just an acquaintance living somewhere there in town. Every single day this person, when in the general public, usually feels ostracized, especially when it becomes common knowledge about their allergy.
So very many people are angry with any individual with an allergy to peanut butter because of the recent push to get many areas designated as peanut free zones. Whether this is at a baseball park, on an airplane, in a school or classroom, at the local amusement park or zoo... the list is almost endless where the subject does arise, should we require a peanut free zone within these boundaries?
The debate is fueled mainly because of tradition. Tradition has always been an important part of furnishing peanuts or peanut butter as a snack, as an ingredient, as a food source for the animals at the local zoo etc.. Now, the administration of each has approached the viability of removing peanuts in any of its various forms.
The common cry "Why? Why do we the majority have to suffer for only about 1 or 2% of the population which has a problem. Make the problem theirs, not ours."
But that slim 1 or 2%, translated into numbers, means approximately a million people are striving every day to stay safe from the proximity of a peanut!
People unfamiliar with this allergen have no clue what the peanut allergic must do to just navigate through a typical day - safely. For a person with a severe allergy, just the act of going from sunup to sunset is cause for celebration. They actually have managed to navigate through one more day safely.
Does that sound like an exaggeration to many of you?
Unfortunately, with a severe peanut allergy and a case of accidental exposure, without the proper medications being in close proximity AND a good samaritan being there to inject that medication, this individual could be dead in under 5 minutes.
Therefore, to all of you unfamiliar with a peanut allergy, this individual is not asking for special treatment - they are just asking for the right to stay alive. Some common troublesome areas for them could be:
- getting a kiss from anyone who had some types of peanuts earlier in the day can become a life or death situation. The allergen can still be on their lips, tongue, teeth, hands, clothing and on and on.
- cross contamination is a major concern. Touching a handle, a doorknob, a knife, fork or spoon, a shopping cart, a taxi cab door, the bathroom faucet, the toilet flusher and anywhere else peanut allergens could be are a danger zone for the peanut allergic individual
- many prepared food products contain peanuts and you do not realize it. Common to bouillon cubes, worcestershire sauce, chili soup, salad dressings, cookies and crackers plus a whole host of other varieties, any of these items can be a danger for this allergy
- airborne particulants are a problem with this allergen. When you shake cereal from a box which happened to be manufactured in a factory which also used peanuts, this can actually lead to an allergy attack. Sounds impossible? Well, it's not. Tiny dust particles can actually lead to a deadly attack.
- did you know your french fries are probably full of peanut dust? Sounds dumb to you, huh? Many fast food and regular restaurants cook the majority of their foods in peanut oil. Flavorings in the boxed groceries you pick up at the store - yes, they all contain peanuts. So that beef and noodle dinner you just ate, it contains the peanut allergen. The store, thus your home, thus your hands are full of this allergen. Peanuts are commonly found in many products if the ingredient label states "natural flavorings".
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