<p>Because smoke is something that is easy to detect and avoid. I am extremely allergic to tobacco. I can’t go past a cigarette cloud without getting hives and scratching like a maniac. However, I can see it and avoid it. My friends who know I’m allergic won’t smoke around me. </p>
<p>The difference with a peanut allergy is that you don’t know what does and doesn’t have peanuts in it. A well-meaning person could think that because there isn’t visible peanuts in something, it’s safe. It’s not the same for cigarettes.</p>
<p>That’s why, IMO, it would be a better strategy to exempt a person with allergies so severe that all peanut products are banned from housing/meal plan than try to regulate all the food students are bringing in and out of a cafeteria.</p>
<p>My daughter is tree nut allergic, but under the advice of allergist has stayed away from peanuts even though they are a legume, not a true nut. ( for those new to the nut allergy world, a few facts…nuts grow on trees, peanuts grow in the ground. Tree nut allergic folks actually have a long list of foods that have similarities in their makeup so as to pose a risk for reaction. Cashew allergy sufferers may also react to mango, bananas and latex. All nuts have similar restriction lists. Makes life difficult). </p>
<p>Prior to our daughter’s first anaphylactic reaction we had no idea just how scary nut allergies can be. Nut products are insidious, and thankfully labeling practices have improved greatly over the past two decades. We still can’t shop at Trader Joes like I’d like, due to the prevalence of nuts/nu products, but at least the info is out there.</p>
<p>Scariest incident…buying, and almost giving my child, a pack of mini chips ahoy. The regular sized package is “safe.”, so I initially thought the minis would be ok. Thankfully the habit of reading EVERY label for years kicked in. Mini chips ahoy contain pecan flour! Just a day in the life… :(</p>
<p>weak argument…second hand smoke is harmful to everyone…peanut allergies effect a very small % of the population. They should avoid peanuts, but not at the inconvenience of the vast majority. If 1 person has an allergy and 500 do not, then the 500 should be cut off from peanut butter instead of the 1 person finding another solution? I don’t think so. Like most things, it comes down to personal responsibility.</p>
<p>Romani…good points. I was addressing the “entitlement” issue with my post. It’s normal to look out for ones best interest. Smokers rights were deemed to be less important than non-smokers, as it was a public health issue. I was so glad that bans were put in place, as I am not a smoker, but I get their feeling of animosity over it. Changing habits is never easy, and can cause folks’ sense of entitlement to spike. </p>
<p>Segregating nut allergic folks could work. I guess being used to being different all your life would prepare one quite well for yet another instance in which you are not allowed to fully participate. Everyone has their cross to bear, and if this is the only thing a person has to deal with in life, I guess it could always be worse. It just seems to me that the small concession of eliminating nuts from a dining hall ( not the entire campus) is minor. </p>
<p>I’m out. It’s been an interesting discussion, and an enlightening one. I hope all sides have more to think on. I know I do.</p>
<p>I work in a small office building on a large corporate campus. It has three floors. There is one elevator. </p>
<p>Last year, the elevator was replaced. It was out of service for four months.</p>
<p>There are several employees with physical disabilities who cannot get to their desks without the elevator. During the four-month repair period, they were re-located to first-floor desks, and other people were required to move to the upper floors to make room for them. All the moving around inconvenienced many people because some employees were temporarily located far from their supervisors and immediate colleagues. </p>
<p>Also, people who needed to schedule meetings that included employees who could not climb the stairs were required to use the first-floor conference room or make it possible for the employee who could not get up the stairs to call in to the meeting. </p>
<p>A substantial number of employees were inconvenienced to make it possible for a few employees to continue working during the elevator repairs.</p>
<p>Would you have handled the situation differently?</p>
<p>I disagree. I was vaguely aware that there are people with life-threatening peanut allergies, but I had no idea how utterly devastating the condition is until I read some of the articles linked to in this thread. To know that any bite you take could be the one with the mystery ingredient . . . I doubt that any of us can really imagine what it must be like to live this way.</p>
<p>And with so many people self-selecting their restrictive diets (I cant eat this, I cant eat that, I cant eat the other . . .), little wonder that people who really cannot eat something arent always taken seriously.</p>
<p>It is a rare thread on which I agree with both geeps and niquii. I also appreciate DeskPotato’s common-sense solutions. I do feel for families that have the concern of nut allergies on top of everything else we worry about with our young adults.</p>
<p>I know, right? Did you know that certain sizes of plain Hershey bars (I know, I know, why was I even letting her have a Hershey bar EVER? Should have given her an apple) are made on separate equipment (and the Hershey company will tell you as much) but others are not?</p>
Great point, romani. Sounds like a point I made a few pages back and was called stupid for. Not that I’m bitter or anything…:rolleyes:</p>
<p>
I noticed that, too!</p>
<p>
I agree with this. Another point is: Do you entrust your life in the hands of over 10,000 students? I know I wouldn’t. I would take responsibility of my allergy and ensure I do everything in my power to not cause a life-threatening reaction.</p>
<p>Even a whiff of peanut dust in an enclosed space could send someone with a severe case of PA to the hospital or even risk potential death. </p>
<p>A reason why some airlines hoping to avoid liability have stopped serving peanut snacks on flights. </p>
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</p>
<p>Interestingly, this is one factor in why I don’t have much sympathy for folks like niquii who are of the “Must have PB/PBJ or they’ll suffer” school.</p>
<p>Hence, their need for a whaambulance… </p>
<p>If one is deprived of food they love, but the deprivation isn’t on the level of what PA risks…namely possible medical emergencies/death…it’s IMO no contest in the context of a residential college dorm dining environment.</p>
<p>I have not read all of the responses here. But I do feel qualified to respond given the fact that my younger children have a very serious medical condition that requires a very carefully monitored diet. I too have to read every label, know how every obscure ingredient is manufactured that may or may not include an ingredient we cannot have. I has been a life changing situation that has changed almost every aspect of our lives, from simple food prep and home, to carefully planned family vacations to include places we can safely eat. But the point here is that it is MY, if not OUR responsibility to avoid.</p>
<p>My kids know that they have to take their lunch or provide their own food, be careful not to set their food down on a contaminated surface, wash their hands, and even begin reading some labels on their own. One thing we have never done is to restrict what other people can eat around us in any circumstance.</p>
<p>I do understand why some elementary schools must restrict peanuts in some cases. But I just wonder if college is taking it to far. It suggests to the student that it is some else’s responsibility to be sure that they are safe. When in fact, it is primarily theirs, as an adult. </p>
<p>When this person graduates and gets a job, will they attempt to restrict the workroom at their company? I doubt that will fly. </p>
<p>Listen, I have the utmost empathy for people in tough situations like this. I live it. But sooner or later, we all have to look out for ourselves, even if that means always providing our own food to be safe.</p>
<p>Desk Potato…OMG. Never had that experience with Hershey. Good grief, more to worry about! You are right…bring on the fresh fruit BTW, the one good thing about my daughter’s food allergy is that she is naturally inclined to choose healthier options…no Sees candy, no Ghiradelli brownies, etc. She eats more fruit and veg than anyone I know. Silver linings…</p>
<p>And even though I said I was done…(foolish, I know!)…Niquii, severely allergic folks are some of the most accountable, responsible and mature people I know. They have lived their entire lives knowing that at any time, a bad (or just unlucky) food choice can KILL THEM. For goodness sakes, do you really think ANY of them are just skipping through life waiting for the kindness of strangers to save them? Hardly. All that is being asked is that this one environment on a college campus can be slightly less potentially lethal! Most take many precautions every month to ensure that they are safe. 3 meals a day, snacks, etc, it adds up and the decision making is exhausting. A little relief (note I said relief, not guarantee…still have to be vigilant) would be a welcome break for those afflicted. </p>
<p>I sincerely hope no one on this board EVER has to deal with the news of a loved one accidentally becoming sick, or worse, from an allergic reaction. You all are “strangers” to me, but if forgoing my beloved pb and j in the college dining hall might mean that you are not put at risk of death, I’d gladly do it. As would quite a few on this thread. </p>
<p>It’s just food…fuel…eat to live, not live to eat and all that jazz.</p>
<p>The deprivation of the masses will never be up to that std. Does not mean everyone has to change to benefit 1 person who has a problem with common item that is no threat to most people. Much easier and safer to treat that 1 person outside the masses.</p>
<p>Almond butter comes in up to eight possible varieties: salt / unsalted, crunchy / creamy, and roasted / raw.</p>
<p>Most typical peanut butter has added salt, sugar, and hard fats to prevent it from separating. “Natural” peanut butter typically just has peanuts and salt and tends to separate.</p>
<p>@cobrat Of course I posted that! If you continued reading my posts, you would see that a club got it placed in the dining halls. Now let’s think about this. A club got a PB&J station place in a dining hall. That’s pretty big. They got over 13,000 students to petition for this station. So my quote of:
is pretty fitting. Over 13,000 students will be affected. I’m not saying the wants of 13,000 students is more important than a life, but they will be bummed out that their station is gone. You can’t argue that. That is simply what I said. </p>
<p>I, however, have not stated my involvement in this club nor have I stated that I will “suffer”. No whaambulance needed. </p>
<p>
That’s good. They should be accountable. They should be responsible. They should be mature. Everything that they’re doing is what I feel they should be doing. Taking responsibility of their allergy and ensuring they minimize their risk.</p>
<p>Not helpful, when your LIFE is at stake, and is less important than a person’s “right” to a non-essential food item, such as peanut butter.</p>
<p>So many interesting points of view that it is hard to resist posting. I do see this issue from both sides, though. I’d hate to give up a favorite food staple too, but I would think that if my abstinence in one small part of my life meant someone else not getting very sick or dying, I would do it…even if I grumbled about it a little.</p>
And what does that quote even have to do with me??</p>
BTW, the one good thing about my daughter’s food allergy is that she is naturally inclined to choose healthier options…no Sees candy, no Ghiradelli brownies, etc. She eats more fruit and veg than anyone I know. Silver linings…</p>