Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream Recalled but It's Not What You Think

Food allergies are protected under the Americans with Disabilites Act so that those kids are entitled to go to school with reasonable accomodations.  Allergies are not something our children or we have any control of - we certainly didnt ask for them but we have a right to an education just as much as your child.  And for the whole "my child only eats PB&J" there are so many other substitutions out there that have similar protein values such as Sunbutter or Soy Nut Butter.  Teach your child compassion.

my son has deathly allergies. He went into anaphylactic shock earlier this week. This is the third time I've had to live through that and he is only three years old. So, I very much appreciate recalls such as these.

First let me say peanuts are NOT a nut they are a legume. I became allergic after my strokes to all legumes which include peanuts, all dried beans, soy and clover honey. I swell up and because of the paralasys on one side it takes longer for the reaction to leave my system.

My 15 year old son has a serious food allergy to peanuts.  He has been hospitalized for anaphylaxis due to cross-contamination twice:  we do everything possible to keep him away from allergens and only mislabeled food has ever "poisoned" him.  He is super sensative and with a peanut-free table at public school, he has been safe, so banning peanut butter was not necessary for him. He and I have always had to be pro-active and vigilant within his own "peanut-free" classroom with too many near misses. Only mean and selfish adults have ever been a problem - why some think peanut butter is a holy foodstuff is beyond me.   It is so hard to keep him safe, but companies like this who do the honorable thing once a mistake is made is super helpful to us.  Thank you for letting us teach others that this allergy is real and deadly!

Honestly, everyone wants to make us change over every corner of the world for them. The fact is we can't do that. Nor should we have to. *I* am responsible for MY medical problems. When I show up at an event with food that contains pork, or we don't know if it contains pork, I do not throw a fit or talk about my deathly allergy. I simply don't eat or eat something I've brought for myself. I sure wouldn't insist everywhere I go and every move around me be pork-free. I also have asthma...which is MY problem for ME to deal with.  It is my responsibility to protect myself, not to make everyone change themselves, especially in public places, to cater to me. I don't consider others to be cruel or selfish, only living THEIR lives, not living mine and not there to make mine better. Though it would be nice if the world revolved around me and everyone in it bowed to my every request, demand, and need, it doesn't work that way and honestly *I* wouldn't want to live that way so I wouldn't DREAM of asking someone else to do so. And if you really want miserable, I'm also allergic to grass, summers are MISERY for me, mowing constantly everywhere I go... It's not compassionate if I make everyone bow and accede to my every demand because of MY deathly allergies and it's not if you do it for your kid either. 

Jalestra -- I'm also allergic to a whole host of other things, including pollens, mold and dust, as well as other food products. The problem with nut allergies, especially peanuts, is that merely avoiding the consumption of food containing them isn't enough. Nuts release tiny droplets of oil into the atmosphere and even a minute amount can be DEADLY for the allergic person. A 7 year old child DIED in her classroom in Virginia just this year from this type of exposure, and a teenager in Canada died about a year ago from kissing her boyfriend, who had eaten something containing peanuts. He'd washed, brushed his teeth and used mouthwash, but there was still enough peanut residue to kill her. Peanut allergies aren't like other food allergies.

Would like to comment on the death of the girl in Canada.  Her death was asthma related, not attributed to peanuts.  She had smoked marijuana earlier in the evening, did not have her inhaler and yes, was allergic to peanuts so while the kiss may have played a small part in her death, was not the true cause.  Her death was roughly eight years ago (I remember this because it was the first thing I thought of when my child was falsely diagnosed with a peanut allergy seven years ago this month).

The little girl in VA died because she ate a peanut cookie offered to her by a classmate on the playground. It had nothing to do with proteins in the air.

Yes, on a plane the air is recycled which is why opening little packages of peanuts and having the dust recirculated is very dangerous.

 

Peanut and nut bans are often in place in younger grades because kids are inherently gross and messy.  I know your child would never pick their nose and eat it but lots of kids do ;-)  The grease that nut butters create are tough to wash off with a swipe of a Clorox wipe and kids rarely wash their hands with the understanding that residue could be potentially dangerous to classmates.  The likelihood of anaphylaxsis is small from peanut residue but it can contribute to discomfort such as hives and in some cases a pyschological discomfort that can make learning tough.  Really do you want to be sitting in a classroom with your biggest fear sitting in the corner waiting to attack you - reality or not?

We have to make changes as a family as well - I have one child who is allergic to wheat, rye, barley and egg.  He is inhalent allergic to gluten in the air which means cooking from scratch regarding baked goods is not possible and even trips to certain grocery stores means he has to wear a mask to cut down exposure.  And just for fun, my younger son is allergic to peanuts and tree nuts which is problematic with many gluten free foods. 

As parents, we are trying to balance what is safe for our kids without stepping on your toes.  Pretty tough to do when you hear all of these stories about kids dying from their allergies, especially at school.

Keep in mind, as an adult you have a much better control of the situations around you.  You can step up and say "No, that is not safe for me" in as a forceful tone as you need to to make your point heard.  My sons have been placed in numerous situations over the last year where they have had others around them say "Oh it's safe for you", when in reality it is not.  And most of you do not understand the total food fest that school has become - birthdays, testing celebrations, field days, just because, holidays, etc.  Yes, both of my kids have "treat" buckets at school which work well 90% of the time.  It's the other 10% of the time, like when the PTA surprises the teachers and kids with a treat.  So you expect my child to either do without, have a teacher leave the class to get a treat for my child or have to face off with a cupcake queen to say "No its really not safe for me".  It's a tough road - teach them to respect elders but yet fight with them when they keep pestering them.