EDM 183 Something dangerous - peanutgraphitints in small hand.book journal
I have debated for two days whether to post this week's Everyday Matters drawing challenge or not. It's not pretty. I couldn't make it pretty if I tried. I didn't want to make a nice drawing of this subject. If you have read my blog for a while then you know about kiddo's life threatening allergy to peanut. When choosing a subject for this challenge this image was the only one in my head. In our world, peanuts are the most dangerous thing on the planet. As I was working on this drawing I found myself getting more and more angry. It bothered me just looking at the reference photo I had found. I scrubbed the paper so hard that I nearly ripped through it in places.
Now that school has started back here where we are I am going to take the opportunity of this post to ask you for a favor. If you have a child, chances are they will be in a class or some other activity with a child that has a serious food allergy. The parent of that child will probably be asking for special considerations concerning their child's exposure to food. Some food allergic individuals cannot be in the presence of the allergin, or can have a reaction by touch. Sometimes parents find it annoying, are resentful that they must accommodate another child's special needs. It is not easy for these parents of food allergic kids to ask for these considerations. Believe me, they would rather not have to. But we are talking about snack food, people. So if you can try to approach that parent with understanding, help them however they ask, be on their side. It's really not so hard.
Here is the Peanut Allergy Do Not Eat list we have, provided by the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network. It includes information on tree nuts as well. Bet you find a few surprises.
Avoid foods that contain peanuts or any of these ingredients:
artificial nuts
beer nuts
cold pressed, expelled, or extruded peanut oil
goobers
ground nuts
mandelonas
mixed nuts
monkey nuts
Nu-Nuts flavored nuts
nutmeat
nut pieces
peanut
peanut butter
peanut flour
May indicate the presence of peanut protein:
African, Chinese, Indonesian, Mexican, Thai, and Vietnamese dishes
baked goods (pastries, cookies, etc...)
candy (including chocolate candy)
chili
egg rolls
enchilada sauce
flavoring (including natural and artificial)
marzipan
nougat
Studies show most allergic individuals can safely eat peanut oil (NOT cold pressed, expelled, or extruded peanut oil).
Arachis oil is peanut oil.
Experts advise peanut allergic patients to avoid tree nuts as well.
A study showed that unlike other legumes, there is a strong possibility of cross reaction between peanuts and lupine.
Sunflower seeds are often produced on equipment shared with peanuts
In soaps, hair care, toothpaste, sunscreen etc. - almond oil may also be referred to as prunus dulcis, amygdalae oleum dulcium or CAS NUMBER:8007-69-0. Peanut may be referred to as arachis hypogaea. Also shay butter, soybean oil, hydrolyzed vegetable protein Almonds, crushed almonds, almond paste, walnuts, walnut oil, pecan oil, hazelnuts flavoring and sesame oil.
SCIENTIFIC NAMES FOR NUT/SEED OILS
SESAMUM INDICUM – SESAME
BUTYROSPERMUM PARKII – SHEANUT OIL (SHEA BUTTER)
PRUNUS DULCIS – ALMOND
PEG -6 ESTERS - ALMOND
PRUNUS AMYGDALUS DULCID - ALMOND
PRUNUS AMERICAN –PLUM
PRUNUS DOMESTICA SEED – PLUM
CARYA ILLINOENSIS – PECAN
ARACHIS OIL –PEANUT
ARACHIS HYPOGAEA EXTRACT – PEANUT
PYCNOGENOL – CAN BE FROM PEANUT
ARGAN OIL – ARGAN NUT
ARGANIA SPINOSA KERNEL OIL – ARGAN NUT
ETHYL MACADAMIATE – MACADAMIA
TERNIFOLA SEED – MACADAMIA
HELIANTHUS OIL – SUNFLOWER
PISTACIA VERA SEED – PISTACHIO
LUPINUS ALBUS – LUPINE BEAN (VERY CLOSELY RELATED TO PEANUT)
LUPINUS LUTEUS SEED EXTRACT – LUPINE
PLANT ESTROGENS – LUPINE
CORYLUS AMERICAN – HAZLENUT
CORYLUS AVELLANA –HAZLENUT
AESCULUS HIPPOCASTANUM – HORSE CHESTNUT
CUCURBITA PEPO SEED OIL – PUMPKIN
KUKUI OIL – KUKUI NUT (MIGHT BE LIKE COCONUT)
Okay, I'm done now. Going back to my drawing table now to finish up something that is hopefully much more pleasant to look at.
16 comments:
Very nice drawing, I like the hint of red. We go through great lengths at school to keep classrooms peanut free when needed. I was surprised to learn that Hershey's chocolate contains peanuts. Lots of unsuspecting foods contain peanuts or "are made on equipment where peanuts have been" (candy corn).
Ann - this is amazing. This peanut actually looks menacing (almost 'reptilian' in nature) - especially when you compare it with the happy strawberry below.
Interesting how sinister the red can look on the peanut and how happy it looks on the berry!
I understand your feelings toward the peanut though. Thanks for educating on your blog about this allergy. People actually laugh at me when I avoid chili. They have no idea how dangerous......
Anyway...beautiful artwork!!
cute drawing!
Thanks for visiting!
Luba, I wish the schools here were that capable, but they're not. And Hershey's actually labels very well. Some of their chocolate bars are safe for kiddo, but it varies with the size, we just have to check the label carefully.
Laurie, thanks for your comments and observations :) Are you allergic to peanut too?
my husband is allergic to tree nuts... But not so dramatically. It is still a pain to make/get foods NOT containing nuts!
My brother and my niece (his daughter) have the hideously bad deadly reactions to nuts - and are both generally allergic to lots of other things too -- So for me this post is spot on--- NUTS can be DEADLY !!!- people who think it is inconvenient to respect this just don't get it --- great post Ann
You managed to make that nut look sinister! I understand how it must make you angry that this little thing can be so dangerous for your child.
My great-nephew is deathly allergic to milk in all forms. He carries an epinephrine pen with him at school just in case. And my sister, after having antibiotics for over 3 years solid suddenly reached a point where her allergies bloomed to include almost every food due to all the "good" bacteria in her intestines being killed off. Ten years later she can eat a few more items than organic meat (you'd be surprised what is added to meat), rice and a few vegetables. Corn and soy are her biggest threats now. It's fun to go out to eat with her! NOT! We find some restaurants try to accomodate her and some don't. Hope your child finds an understanding classroom this year.
We view peanuts the same way in our house. My son is deathly allergic to them, too. In fact, when I pulled up your blog, he said "That is yucky" because he knew it was a peanut.
I really like your message about others being understanding in school. People just don't realize how much terror a PB&J can bring. They are lucky they don't live in our reality and don't even realize it.
-Robyn
www.peanutallergykid.com
I was just at girls camp last week and I tried to educate the camp cook about peanut allergies - and even how many folks are allergic to strawberries. Her response was "those who are allergic should bring their own food". Then at camp she proceeded to cook with peanut oil.... sigh.... I might as well have been barking at the moon since my words didn't sink in. I'm sorry for your experiences and I appreciate you educating us!
and I should add: the camp cook (see previous comment) provided peanut butter and strawberry jelly for "hike day."
Ann,
I work in a middle school and every year the nurses in our district send out an e-mail about the hazards of even having any thing with peanuts in the same room as th volitile oils float inthe air and can be loads of trouble if a kiddo has a severe enough reaction. We have been advised to not even have peanutbutter on our toast in the morning at home because peanutbutter breath can even be enough to cause a reaction.
So, please know that there are schools and districts that do take this seriously.
I'm very allergic to hazelnuts, walnuts and pecans and this came on me after I was 30 years old! Talk about a pain! No carrot cake any more...or banana bread Unless I make them myself!
Thanks everyone - I really appreciate your supportive comments. Serious food allergies are a lot more prevalent than many realize. It's nice to know that there are schools out there that know what they are doing when it comes to food allergies. We are in a very small, somewhat isolated community. Good for some things but bad for other stuff, like awareness. And I have heard parents complain about having to make accommodations.
Stephanie that's too bad you became allergic to nuts as an adult. Hubby had the same thing happen with shellfish. Grew up eating the stuff, then around 30 he became allergic. No shrimp in our house either :(
Hi,
My son has food allergies too(peanut included). I have started a website that you might find interesting, SPEWD Free. It's all about allergen free cooking and recipes. www.spewdfree.com
Ann, you and your kiddo sure have my sympathy! It's almonds and other tree nuts with me, and DON'T be get tired of having to check everything before we eat, drink, or touch it??
But anaphylactic shock is even less fun that reading every label and asking everyone what's in their wonderful, tempting dessert...
Awesome job making the peanut look so sinister. My hugs and prayers to you and your kiddo, few people understand even mild allergies until they have to deal with one themselves.
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