Is PB&J a threat?

Is PB&J a threat? Parents ask schools to ban peanuts
By SHIRLEY JINKINS


Two years ago, Burleson school officials faced a perfect storm of food sensitivity: Bransom Elementary School on the city’s southeast side had not one, not two, but 17 students across seven grades with severe peanut allergies.

The chances of isolating so many students from a random Reese’s or peanut butter and jelly sandwich were small at best, and the consequences of failure could have been lethal.

"It was overwhelming," said Cathy Marsh, the district’s director of nursing and health services. "That’s a lot of students interacting with each other at very different times. We felt we couldn’t contain this problem."

That story is being played out nationally as the number of children diagnosed with potentially fatal peanut allergies increases and more parents call for an all-out ban on peanut products at school.

more...

http://www.star-telegram.com/804/story/834860.html

But when I was growing up, one hardly never heard of peanut allergies. Now it seems to be endemic. It has to be the soil or something that's in peanuts today, that wasn't in peanuts in days of old.

Can play all sorts of games like that. Coorelation does not equal causation.

And computers are not as much a part of our lives nor as long as water. Water is pretty basic.

George Bush?

Well, more here in Texas. ;-)

peanut allergy didn't really exist. Now, it does. Something changed.

take your pick.

Things have changed alright.

parents took turns bringing snacks. Peanut butter was not allowed.

I seem to remember that being big news a couple of years ago? :shrug:

There are "no-peanut" tables, and I didn't want my kids having to sit elsewhere because of their lunch. Also, they seem to make friends with kids with peanut allergies. It's easy enough to replace the pb with sunflower seed butter.

I hope someone's researching why this increase in dangerous allergies is increasing...

Peanuts are not lethal unless ingested. There were a few stories of mere contact causing death, but, as I understand it, those were false.

It's not like peanuts are a necessary part of life... and can really be dangerous. There are plenty of other things kids can eat.

and go into shock or die. So they can be lethal without being ingested if this article is correct.

I don't blame you for not trusting me, I'm just telling what I found the last time I looked there were no lethal cases from mere contact.

Maybe young kids are more susceptible? :shrug:

...someone who had eaten peanuts, but it turned out that the person died of asthma related to smoke.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4778740.stm

http://www.news-medical.net/?id=17942

You can inhale the proteins however it's highly unlikely since the proteins would not be located in the smell of peanuts but the physical proteins. I have heard this can happen if peanuts are being shelled since dust can be floating in the air but it would have to be a lot of peanuts being shelled.