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Peanut Allergy > What is a Peanut Allergy?
What is a Peanut Allergy?
In this Article:
Peanut allergy is a disease affecting the immune system in which the body suffers from a range of symptoms after exposure to some of the proteins in peanuts. It is distinct and different from nut allergy. A peanut is a legume whereas a tree nut is a dry fruit. While the symptoms and signs maybe the same, a person with a peanut allergy might not have a nut allergy.
Peanut Allergy is the most prevalent food allergy in the US, where as many as one and a half million people suffer from the disease. For some of them, exposure to the smallest amount of peanut can trigger a serious and potentially fatal allergic reaction.
How small? A standard peanut has about 200 mg of protein, and studies have shown that some people have an allergic reaction to just 2 mg—or around 1% of one peanut.
Peanut allergy is also the most deadly allergic reaction, accounting for four out of every five life-threatening incidences of anaphylactic shock (an exaggerated, or serious, allergic response) annually. While it is rare for this allergen to be fatal (statistics show that food allergies as a group account for about 150 deaths each year) it is nonetheless very dangerous, and if you have any suspicion that you or a loved one may be allergic to peanuts, you should see your physician immediately.
Peanut Allergy Resources
What is a Peanut Allergy?
In this Article:
Peanut allergy is a disease affecting the immune system in which the body suffers from a range of symptoms after exposure to some of the proteins in peanuts. It is distinct and different from nut allergy. A peanut is a legume whereas a tree nut is a dry fruit. While the symptoms and signs maybe the same, a person with a peanut allergy might not have a nut allergy.Peanut Allergy is the most prevalent food allergy in the US, where as many as one and a half million people suffer from the disease. For some of them, exposure to the smallest amount of peanut can trigger a serious and potentially fatal allergic reaction.
How small? A standard peanut has about 200 mg of protein, and studies have shown that some people have an allergic reaction to just 2 mg—or around 1% of one peanut.
Peanut allergy is also the most deadly allergic reaction, accounting for four out of every five life-threatening incidences of anaphylactic shock (an exaggerated, or serious, allergic response) annually. While it is rare for this allergen to be fatal (statistics show that food allergies as a group account for about 150 deaths each year) it is nonetheless very dangerous, and if you have any suspicion that you or a loved one may be allergic to peanuts, you should see your physician immediately.
Peanut Allergy Resources
Peanut Allergy Resources
