Allergies - The Peanut Butter Controversy

In this article we're doing to discuss one of the most dangerous allergies, especially to children who really enjoy their peanut butter and jelly and the arguments for giving or not giving peanut butter to young children in potentially high risk allergic groups.

Let's face it, if you're a kid, or even a kid at heart, you love peanut butter and jelly. Who doesn't? Unfortunately, peanut butter doesn't love everybody as many are allergic to it and this is one allergy that can be downright deadly. Recently a girl died just because she had kissed somebody who had eaten peanut butter. That is a very scary thought.

One of the biggest controversies these days is when to actually allow your child to start having peanut butter. Years ago the only warning was not to give your child big chunks of peanut butter but to spread it thin. This could be started at any age. But today, with the alarming number of kids turning out to be allergic to peanut butter, it is recommended that a child not be given peanut butter until 2 or 3 years of age. Even though allergies to peanut butter are not the most common, they are the most deadly and because of this it is believed extra care is needed. Also, these allergies are the least likely to be outgrown.

There are several determining factors in avoiding giving your child peanut butter. The irst factor is if they have shown allergies or intolerances to other foods or even their baby formula. Then there is whether or not they have other allergic type disorders such as eczema, allergic rhinitis, or asthma or if they have members in the family that have these conditions as allergies can be inherited. Also, if they have other family members with food allergies, especially if another family member is allergic to peanut butter.

It is actually recommended that for high risk children they not only avoid peanut butter until they are older but also cow's milk, citrus fruits and juices and wheat until they are at least 1 year old. They should avoid eggs until age 2 and finally peanuts and shellfish until they are over 2 years of age.

This is where the controversy heats up. Some experts say that children who are not considered to be in a high risk group do not have to do these things. Others say that because food allergies, especially peanuts, are so deadly that it just doesn't make sense not to err on the side of caution. They say that even children not in a high risk group can still have allergies to peanuts and therefore the only way to avoid a reaction is to never allow them to eat peanut butter. Some say that's extreme, others say that one reaction can be the last one.

Ultimately, it comes down to the parent. You have to weigh the risks of giving your child peanut butter against the benefits. Yes, peanuts are high in protein and peanut butter and jelly is a very convenient and easy lunch to make, especially for bringing to school. But if your child is severely allergic it only takes one bite of one sandwich.

Michael RussellYour Independent guide to Allergies

Good News For Peanut Allergy Sufferers

An allergy to peanuts can cause hives, swelling of the face and throat, and ultimately block breathing. And this food allergy has been affecting a rising number of the population in recent decades, with 1 to 1.5% of the populations severely allergic to even the smallest traces of peanut.
So with the knowledge that some people have a very low peanut allergy threshold, (often times with their reaction to peanuts being wildly different from one peanut sufferer to the other), it is most worrisome that even right now, with all the advances in food manufacturing techniques, food manufacturers are often unsure if their food contains peanut trace.

At the moment that unsure approach to how much peanut may be contained in processed food is usually handled by simply placing a warning on the food label of the product, suggesting that the food may contain traces of peanut. However, in the United Kingdom, the Great British Food Standards Agency (FSA) have produced a test, that manufacturers can use to test for, and find, even the most minute traces of peanut in a processed products.

Dr Andrew Wadge, Director of Food Safety Policy for the FSA since 2003, said: "The Food Standards Agency has a wide program of research that aims to increase knowledge and understanding of food allergy and intolerance so that we can better protect the interests of consumers... Further research is needed to explore whether the test can be adapted to detect other common food allergens. However it is hoped that the work could lead to the development of a process that food businesses will be able to use in their production methods."

The food test works simply by detecting any peanut DNA in a food item or product, and was developed by scientist at the Central Science Laboratory. Calling the unique food test PCR, they tested it out on a number of food items found on everyday shelves of stores around the country, such as cakes and biscuits (which are often among some of the most risky items for peanut allergy sufferers to purchase).

Although further testing development and research is planed, before the PCR test will be used commercially, (allowing manufacturers and shoppers to know with relative surety whether or not their food products contain nut trace), this will all obviously prove as good news for all of us Peanut Allergy sufferers around the world.


Allen Matthews is the main editor for http://www.peanutallergyfacts.com/, and is one of many peanut allergic people in the world today.

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