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Chocolate-dipped peanut butter balls
(Photo by Joy) |
There was a time when only the peanut-allergic had to shy away from the delectable goodness we call peanut butter; a time when the choice of chunky or smooth was the biggest dilemma in your lunchtime drama; when your only fear in life was of developing a sensitivity to legumes. Some days you had arguments with fellow peanut butter-loving kids about which brand was better: Jif, Skippy, or Peter Pan (whose jingle may sound mysteriously familiar to DriveShaft's "(You All) Everybody," to all you "Lost" fans). But as you matured and your palate developed, you probably longed for flavors more exotic and hot. My, how all that has changed!
Peanut butter has come a long way from the product originally created in the late 1800s for the toothless (who were not able to chew properly), and as a protein substitute for vegetarians. Sure, peanuts had been used in cooking for countless generations prior, but it was a handful of paste creators that brought about the evolution of what we presently refer to as "peanut butter." Since then, culinary experts have concocted many gourmet combinations, flavors, and textures of our beloved spread.
Today, two days beyond a very low-key National Peanut Butter Day, it seems we're questioning every peanut-based product in our pantry. And the recall list keeps growing -- now your dog's treats may be affected, too! The current outbreak of Salmonella began many months ago and has infected hundreds of people and possibly caused six deaths, but it's just been a matter of weeks since they discovered the strain originated with a basic peanut paste distributed widely. Thankfully, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration appears to be on top of things, and it's a good thing too, lest we start seeing too many television commercials for lawyers handling such cases.
Hopefully all this will be cleared up -- and the public's faith restored -- by the time Peanut Butter Lover's Day (March 1) and Peanut Butter and Jelly Day (April 2) roll around!
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Peanut Butter Makers, Peanut Allergy, Salmonella, Foodbourne Illnesses |
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Archived under: Allergies, Celebrations, Disease, Epidemics, Events, Food and Drink, Health, Nutrition, Recalls, Sandwiches |
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Posted by: dheerajims at January 30, 2009 1:55 AM
We had a saying when I raised my children - If you're out of peanut butter, you're out of FOOD!
Why are peanut allergies such a problem? I don't remember anyone having food allergies when I went to school.
But now it is big problem!
I found the following statistics on various websites -
AUSTRALIA: Australia has one of the highest allergic incidence rates in the developed world.
CANADA: Between 3% and 4% of Canadian adults, and nearly 6 % of children suffer from food allergies
GERMANY: The prevalence in children is 3 percent to 6 percent, but can be up to 30 percent in high-risk groups, such as children with eczema.
ITALY: An estimated 6 to 8% of the Italian population has food allergies.
JAPAN: about 7% of population had some form of food allergy.
MALAYSIA: about 30% of young children are likely to develop allergic disorders in the first five years of life.
SWEDEN: one out of 15 children with reported adverse reactions to food.
US: One in every 17 children under the age of 3 has food allergy.
And really serious food reactions are not all that rare - "A study in Arch Intern Med 2001 Jan 8;161(1):15-2, Anaphylaxis in the United States: an investigation into its epidemiology, concluded with “The occurrence of anaphylaxis in the US is not as rare as is generally believed. On the basis of our figures, the problem of anaphylaxis may, in fact, affect 1.21% (1.9 million) to 15.04% (40.9 million) of the US population.” PMID 11146694"
So is this epidemic of food allergies mostly among young children caused by being too clean (hygiene theory - food allergies are unknown in undeveloped countries) in the last 5 years or something else?
1960 - children received on average one or two vaccines
1980 - children received 8-9 vaccines
1990 - children were routinely given 10 vaccines
2000 - Children now receive 33 vaccinations before they enter school
2007 - Children are now to receive 48 doses of 14 vaccines by age six and 53-56 doses of 15 or 16 vaccines by age 12.
Vaccines contain an adjuvant that increases the body's immune response to the protein in the vaccine. Something that the public and most physicians don't realize is that the adjuvant also contains a mixture of vegetable and animal oils that have a trace of food protein in them. This is a protected trade secret and does not have to appear on the package insert. The ingredients of many adjuvants can only be found by reading patents. What are these oils? Soy, sesame, peanut, wheat germ, corn, shellfish, fish, etc.
Can a trace amount of food protein in a vaccine cause food allergy? Yes. This has been known since 1839, when the French physiologist Francois Magendie injected animals to create a food allergy to egg whites.
The food industry has to label food that may contain trace amounts of peanuts or nuts but the pharmaceutical industry is exempt. Shouldn't your doctor know if he is injecting a peanut-allergic patient with peanut oil?
Posted by: barbfeick at February 05, 2009 8:44 AM
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