Allergic to nuts
“My five-year-old son never has birthday cake at parties. If there is even a trace of certain nuts, he could have a life-threatening reaction,” relates Stephanie Fisch. Her son is one of the many children with an allergy to peanuts and tree nuts such as cashews, walnuts and hazelnuts.
Food allergies can trigger a variety of symptoms ranging from mild ones like sneezing, vomiting and hives to severe life-threatening ones. “Occasionally, exposure results in potentially fatal anaphylaxis,” cautions board-certified allergist,
Eugene Gatti, MD. “Anyone who has a serious response to a certain food, must NEVER taste it again.”
Even indirect contact – such as inhaling or touching skin – may trigger a reaction. That’s why it’s so important to accommodate requests for an allergy-free environment and to seek immediate medical treatment for any negative reaction to food such as nuts.