Not sure how I feel about this article

I didn't appreciate this article much. I am also tired of that lady from FAAN.
So based on that article, most of us shouldn't be here? Many of us think we have a peanut allergy, but really don't? I think it is irresponsible to put out an article like this because we work so hard to keep our kids safe and then a person who heads up an organization like FAAN says oh most don't have a true allergy? What is her problem????
All I know is that I watched my baby nearly die from PB, I've seen him with hives and itchiness after contact reactions. I feel that articles like this really make the general public feel it is okay to not take me seriously...The lady from "FAAN" says most peanut allergies are overstated....so xx is just an overprotective mommy.
KWIM?
We know what we know with our kids. Many of us have administered epi pens and benadryl countless times. This article is making me more angry by the second.....
I just went on the FAAN site and they have a response to Boston Legal. She says the reaction in 20 seconds was made dramatic for tv and that epinephrine usually quickly helps the person. (in the episode the child died).
I guess that I always feel that lady Ann Marie, is constantly minimizing pa and I don't care for her at all...
[This message has been edited by saknjmom (edited January 31, 2007).]

(the article is about a year old)
While I definitely DO NOT like the "there-there, it's mostly in their heads anyway" tone, which is clearly directed at placating those parents who are miffed by peanut restrictions and itching to break the rules....
I see his point. It is a terrible thing to diagnose a child with a PA when they could actually be eating them with impunity. It also falsely raises the rate of "outgrowing" the allergy. I would also be just thrilled if Mom X would shut her pie-hole at playgroup (or wherever) when she blabs on and on about her son/daughter who is PA and eats all kinds of **** that I [i]KNOW[/i] they can't possibly really be eating if they are PA.
People who [i]aren't[/i] allergic but [i]say[/i] that they are (even though they have an impossibly loose comfort zone for someone who is genuinely allergic) make ME look crazy. Crazier than this guy ever will. It also gives false hope to our extended family regarding "outgrowing" the allergy.
Those of us who have to live with the real deal every day DREAD running into those people who think they know "all about peanut allergies" because So-and-so is allergic, and they aren't nearly as freaked out about it as you are. Because it is a short step mentally to them then needing to [i]prove something to you about how over-reactive you are about this.[/i] I FEAR those people. Deeply.
But the bottom line is that he's absolutely right. You don't know whether or not an allergy is "real" until there's a reaction history to go with test results. Period. (And that one cuts both ways-- IgE below detection limits doesn't mean 'not allergic' if you have reaction history that says otherwise.)

Well, in my opinion....it comes down to we really don't know. But who in their right mind would take the risk to find out, really?? My son's tongue and lips swelled up when he tasted a tiny smidge of peanut butter...so would I relly risk it again to find out if he could go into shock, heck no. I take the precatuions necessary to keep any reaction from happening. I really do wish I knew more though, honestly, am I being a freak about all this for nothing?? You DON't know!!!!!! That is what is hard and that is what is hard to explain, it COULD happen, that's all that matters. If they came up with a test to find the level of allergen your body would react to, I'd love it. I'd love to know if my kids are high risk, low risk...what ever...do I need to be very careful or just mildy careful, we have no answers for that, so we treat EVERY allergy as if it could kill them. Plain and simple.
I run into this so much it's not even funny. There is even a kid at school *allergic* to peanut butter, but only gets hives if he eats it...so here's my son sitting at his safe peanut-free table, not allowed any snacks brought by someone at school, and they are both labeled allergic. So who looks like the freak here, I do. I hate it, I do!
my opinion.....
------------------
Chanda(mother of 4)
Sidney-8 (beef and chocolate, grasses, molds, weeds, guinea pig & asthma)
Jake-6 (peanut, all tree nuts, eggs, trees, grasses, weeds, molds, cats, dogs, guinea pig & eczema & asthma)
Carson-3 1/2 (milk, soy, egg, beef and pork, cats, dog, guinea pig)
Savannah-1 (milk and egg)

What kind of Dr. is the man who wrote this article. I don't remember seeing what he specialized in. One of our best family friends is an anethesiologist(sp) and he admits he knows nothing about allergies. He only knows what he does, not anything else, not heart disease, not ortho., he knows about putting people to sleep and keeping them alive and of course the wonderful epidural!!!!Anyway, I am so tired of regular GPs or internists, and actually some allergists, act like they know every thing there is to know about FA. Makes me VERY angry!!!

I agree this article is annoying. Sounded like this "doctor" was just annoyed he couldn't bring peanut butter to his child's bday party at the playspace which was being accomodating to PA.
The whole problem is...you're right, "Doctor", we DON'T know which kids are going to have anaphalytic reactions...it's Russian Roulette. Some kids with anaphalyxis only had mild reactions before that.
My DS *may* be outgrowing his PA, and can do the food challenge, but he is terrifed of peanuts/possible reaction. He is severely allergic to tree nuts, so what's the poing? And, his brother is severely PNA/TNA, so we all avoid both. The food challenge is nothing to take lightly.
I totally agree with saknjmom...I CAN NOT STAND that FAAN woman, Anne Munoz-Furlong. She does so many disservices to those of us with kids with severe allergies, and I think she has a serious conflict of interest going with the peanut board's investment in FAAN. I don't trust her one bit and FAAN gets nothing from me because of her and this conflict of interest.

Anne Munoz Furlong needs to just shut up about peanut allergies... really. Comments like that are the main reason that I don't belong to FAAN.

My DS is so allergic (according to his doctor who is Board Certified by the American Board of Allergy and Immunology)that even a SPT is not an option. His IgE numbers are some of the highest numbers that his doctor has ever seen. A food challenge is not an option. A "food challenge" could kill my son.
However, even if his number were not that high, I don't know what difference it should make to Dr. Sanghavi. Even if the rate is not increasing, peanut and/or tree nut (e.g. walnut, almond and cashew) allergy affects about three million Americans. It is estimated that more than 150 people die annually from anaphylaxis to food.
What is the point of this article? If Dr. Sanghavi's child was determined to be "allergic" by a Board certified allergist, would he give his child a "test" just to make sure? Knowing that this "test" could make his child very sick for many days or kill him?
In my opinion it does not matter if 3 million Americans are "allergic" or if 6 million are "allergic" or if 20 million are "allergic"...all I know if that my DS is "allergic". Until there is a better test to inconclusivly "prove" the severity of an allergy without putting that person in danger, all we have to go on is what is medically possible at this time...a combination of history, skin test, blood test, and the determination of an allergist with is specifically trained to make such a diagnosis.
To make it seem that we like to revolve our lives around some made-up allergy is insulting. I wish Dr. Sanghavi would spend one day in my shoes....the tone of his article would change drastically.

[img]http://uumor.pair.com/nutalle2/peanutallergy/smile.gif[/img]
[This message has been edited by NicoleinNH (edited June 10, 2007).]

I heard FAAN are sponsered by a peanut company anyway, so of course gonna say stuff like this.

Wow, I am continually surprised (and disappointed) by the posts on this board.
I thought it was an excellent article. The only exception was the part about "half the peanut reactions not requiring treatment." I would like to know what that's based on.
For the most part, though, it seemed balanced and fair. There ARE a huge amount of mothers who say their kids have "allergies" when they aren't. There are no doubt parents of children who hang out on this board who have false-positive readings and whose kids aren't really allergic. Why is that such a terrible thing to comtemplate? It is a major burden to live with a food allergy, so perhaps doctors should be more aggressive about food challenges (in a controlled environment, of course). I think if we get rid of some of the Munchhausen-by-proxy mothers, people might actually take food allergies MORE seriously, not less.
Anne M-F in my humble opinion is an EXCELLENT advocate. She's put food allergies on the map in the 11 years we've been a member of FAAN. As a publishing professional, I'm continually astonished as to where I see her getting editorial placements. Plus, she's now got the peanut people sponsoring research - how great is that? That's like getting Iran to pay for the Iraq war!
Seriously, peanuts and the people who grow them are not "the enemy" and everyone should have a vested interest in finding a cause for these allergies. I don't want to see the peanut industry suffer just because my kid is allergic.
Final thought: there is nothing to stop any of you gripers from starting your own food-allergy advocacy group, or writing/promoting these types of articles. What a differnt world it could be for our kids if we all channeled our energy in these positive ways, rather than just snarking at the people who make the effort on our behalf.