Peanut Allergies
In out last post we talked about healthy breakfasts. In this post we will be talking about a food that may be harming your child at lunch that you are not aware of. That food is the peanut. That peanut butter and jelly sandwich that you pack in your child’s lunchbox may be harming your little one, or could be putting another child at risk.
Believe it or not, both day cares and schools across the nation are debating whether or not to ban peanuts and peanut products from school lunch rooms. There is nothing personal about this traditional snack food, but rather there has been an increase the number of children with peanut allergies.
According to Anne Munoz-Furlong, the founder and CEO of The Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network, “From 1997-2002, peanut allergies in children doubled.”
It is estimated that the number of Americans with food allergies has increased from 6 million to 12 million from 1997-2002. Part of this may be due to better access to medical attention and testing which can result to a real improvement to the health of individuals instead of being chronically sick for their entire lifetimes.
There are many theories on why there is an increase in allergies. Some believe it is because of genetically engineering our food, others believe it is because we are way too clean and that our obsession with killing all germs is weakening our immune systems.
For our children, dealing with a peanut allergy can be difficult. It is important to know that it is best to refuse foods which may potentially contain peanuts. For some, eating foods which have even come in contact with peanuts can cause a severe reaction. In fact, back in 2005, a teenager in Canada died after kissing her boyfriend who had just eaten a peanut snack. This just demonstrated how we need to be diligent in what foods we put in our bodies.
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September 04 2008 12:16 am | food allergies