First it was pox parties, now it's...

[IDrinkaRum]

As far as I know, there are no peanut allergies on my side of the family.

My sister's daughter is allergic to peanuts. My sister didn't find out until she was a little over 2 years old, and she had tried a tiny bite of my sister's PB&J sandwich. She immediately started to get hives around her mouth. Fortunately her husband was home, and realized what was happening. The bit of sandwich was still in her mouth and he fished it out with his finger. As soon as the sandwich was out, the hives started to go down, but they still took her to the ER. Afterwards, she took her daughter, herself, and her husband to the allergist and they all had allergy tests. Daughter is only allergic to peanuts. My sister is allergic to horses and cats and a couple of other things. Her husband is allergic to more things, and he actually takes allergy shots which will (hopefully) make him immune to the things he's allergic to.

[HYHYBT]

One problem: people *develop* allergies. You might well not react the first time, or the 50th, and then have trouble on the 51st.

[fireheart17]

One problem: people *develop* allergies. You might well not react the first time, or the 50th, and then have trouble on the 51st.

Yep. One story I heard was of a woman who had an anaphylactic reaction from the fish in her fish and chips.

Also you can grow out of certain allergies and there are ways to help with it when you get older (building up tolerance for example). I was lactose intolerant for about 6-7 months when I was a baby, now I can guzzle milk down like it's water.

I think from the kids point of view, they don't care as long as they can smear peanut butter on their faces .

On a somewhat side-note: we don't go too overboard with the nut-free policies in schools, generally it's "be careful about using certain products for craft projects or cooking projects", "don't allow kids to share lunches", "mark things that have allergens in them" and "have teachers trained in EpiPen usage". (not a problem in itself as all teachers are required to be First Aid trained). So little Johnny can bring that Nutella sandwich to school, he just can't share it with other people.

[Mongo Skruddgemire]

Dont get me wrong, I understand parents wanting to know if thier kid has an allergy, but if you dont have insurance, I dont think planning to expose them to something counts as a suitable alternative.

On the other hand peanut butter and peanuts in general are a very common food. So common in fact that it is often the bane of the existences of people who are allergic to it.

So on one hand it sounds irresponsible to have a "peanut party", but on the other hand is it irresponsible or even abnormal to try a baby on new foods? Especially one such as peanut butter which is reasonably healthy, packed with protein, and in the cases of starving children in third world countries who have lost their appetites from being so food deprived that often times it is the only thing that will jump start them eating again.

I tend to think that this is a imaginative way to find out if it is safe for your child or not. I mean that even with insurance, it can often times take an act of congress to get the permission slip to take a person to a specialist with out there being a known issue. Kid shows signs of an allergic reaction? BAM! you have a referral and it is usually covered. Think there may be a problem or want to nip a problem in the bud? Insurance companies can be a bit of a cock about such things.

The way I see it, the average parent is going to have their child try peanuts and peanut butter at some point early on in childhood. As irresponsible as it sounds, at least doing it across the street from the Hospital is far safer than doing it at home where you have to either drive like a maniac (endangering yourself and others on the roads as well as further endangering an already distressed patient) or calling 911 and hoping like hell that the ambulance gets there before the kid snuffs it.

A Pox Party is exposing a child to something that will harm them (be that harm minor as in the average case of chicken pox or major as in bad reactions). The Peanut Party is much the same if you look at it from one point, but when you consider that at worst estimations, peanut allergies only occur in .04-.06% of the population. So you are just hedging your bets in case your child is one of the 4.2 Million out of a population of 7 Billion that has it.

While not the wisest course of action, it could be considered to a lot better than a mother just letting little Timmy or little Suzie have their first taste of Jif when they're 20 miles away from a hospital.

[Mongo Skruddgemire]

One problem: people *develop* allergies. You might well not react the first time, or the 50th, and then have trouble on the 51st.

Ok, I'll grant you that. But consider this.

Regardless of whether or not a mother just gives the kid their first taste of peanut butter or attends a peanut butter party *or* takes their child to an allergist...if the child shows no signs of allergy *now* they are going to eat peanut butter until they hit that magic "This shit is going to kill you now" number.

So good (allergist testing), bad (party), or indifferent (letting the kid try a new food like normal), the outcome does not change if the person is going to be that sort of person that is going to develop that allergy in the course of time. They will test fine, then have their first reaction and be in serious trouble.

So what then? Genetic testing? Good luck getting insurance to approve a full genetic workup especially if there is no history of peanut allergy in the family. And without insurance...a one-in-4.2 million chance makes justifying the cost very hard. The child technically has a better chance of getting run over by a bus.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

Yeah, I didn't used to be allergic to cashews. I developed that allergy in my late twenties.

[Panacea]

So good (allergist testing), bad (party), or indifferent (letting the kid try a new food like normal), the outcome does not change if the person is going to be that sort of person that is going to develop that allergy in the course of time. They will test fine, then have their first reaction and be in serious trouble.

So what then? Genetic testing? Good luck getting insurance to approve a full genetic workup especially if there is no history of peanut allergy in the family. And without insurance...a one-in-4.2 million chance makes justifying the cost very hard. The child technically has a better chance of getting run over by a bus.

So far as I know, peanut allergies are not genetically related, so would be pointless.

You've missed a point I made earlier: having a "peanut party" creates a false sense of security in parents whos kids come out OK, and probably will reveal very few kids who are actually allergic.

IF you want to know for sure, see a dermatologist. If you can't afford it, then simply be observant over time starting the kid out on peanut butter in small amounts while still at home. Most kids will be fine.

Don't engage in silly, potentially dangerous behaviors of having "parties" to test sensitivity to food or other exposures that will either create that false sense of security or create mental trauma for all the other kids if some kid really does have an anaphalactic reaction in the middle of the thing

[Mongo Skruddgemire]

So far as I know, peanut allergies are not genetically related, so would be pointless.

You've missed a point I made earlier: having a "peanut party" creates a false sense of security in parents whos kids come out OK, and probably will reveal very few kids who are actually allergic.

And you missed one of my points too...

Regardless of whether or not a mother just gives the kid their first taste of peanut butter or attends a peanut butter party *or* takes their child to an allergist...if the child shows no signs of allergy *now* they are going to eat peanut butter until they hit that magic "This shit is going to kill you now" number.

In fact not only did you miss it, you missed where I agreed with you.

So good (allergist testing), bad (party), or indifferent (letting the kid try a new food like normal), the outcome does not change if the person is going to be that sort of person that is going to develop that allergy in the course of time. They will test fine, then have their first reaction and be in serious trouble.

No matter what the parents do. Be it a peanut party, trying the children on new foods like any other mother, or taking the child to an allergist will create a false sense of security (unless they're one of the 0.06% of the world's population to have the allergy and have the reaction at a an early onset) since they may be fine now and for several years afterwards up until the minute they have a nutter butter and keel over stone dead.

My point on the whole thing is that while it may be pointless, while it may be a trendy parenting thing, it is at least no different than giving a child peanut butter around their first year with the noted exception of it at least being in close proximity to a hospital in case something does go wrong.

I gave my three children peanut butter at the age of one year. I made sure that they were not given too much since it can be a choking hazard being a think and sticky paste, and I made sure that I watched the kids and their breathing for several hours after their first introduction to it. None of them had a reaction and so they got more. Then when they were old enough to handle it completely on their own they started getting PB&J sandwiches.

AND I did it at my home which was in the middle of bum-fuck rural New England, 20 miles away from the nearest hospital.

So when you put it in a certain light, *I* would be the irresponsible parent because my child could have gone into anaphylaxis and been upwards of 30-40 minutes away from medical help whereas the peanut party people are minutes away, sometimes across the street from the ER entrance.

So I ask again. Is what they do really all that different from taking a one year old (the age their doctor suggested it to us) and letting them try it? Or is this just giving people the "creepy oompah-loompah vibes" because this is turning out to be another trendy thing parents do?

I'm not going to do the party, but when my niece is born I'm going to suggest to my sister that we let the kid sample the peanut butter at the AppleBee's across the street from her hospital. At best we have a nice meal out, at worst we have a full level-one trauma center close enough I can hit it with a frisbee.

[draco664]

It's like playing the lottery.

I'd say it's like a reverse lottery. You don't pay the entry fee (full allergy test) and you've got a chance to lose a fortune. (Admitted to a US ER)