Peanut Butter

[shais_mom]

Someone over on the GR board brought this up I thought it would be a good idea to bring it up here.
Please be careful if you give your dog anything stuffed with Peanut Butter. So many children severely allergic to peanuts that a lick from a friendly dog could give the child a trip to the hospital or worse.

This is not copied and pasted but I got the jist of it.

[crow_noir]

*scratches head* never thought of it that way. ...thanks for the heads up! (silly how we over look some of the simplist things!)

[Dixieland Dancer]

This is very confusing to me. If a child is allergic to peanuts the reaction would only occur if the child actually ate peanuts. Having a dog lick a child is not having the child ingest peanuts. How would this cause a reaction?????? Actually I can't imagine a dog eating peanut butter and stopping to lick a child in the first place. Mine ignore everyone around until the last lick is gone. Can someone who has more health awareness than me, please explain this?
Thanks,
Candy

[DoggiesAreTheBest]

Dixieland Dancer, you are right! If the kids are allergic to peanuts, the problem is internal and a dog licking their face would be something on the skin!

I don't know about your dog, but if Drake has peanut butter, he won't lick anything else!

[kobieeli]

Actually, people who are highly allergic to peanuts can have bad reactions just SMELLING peanuts! Supposedly, the lining of their noses and throats swells so badly it blocks their ability to breathe. These folks are (partly) the reason peanuts aren't served on airlines anymore, as the closed cabins don't allow fresh air to circulate. And peanut-allergic kids eat their lunches in a completely separate area of the cafeteria at most schools, I've heard.... It's weird how this allergy seemed to just show up in the last 10-15 years or so--I never knew anyone with it when I was in school.

[3-greys-and-a-mutt]

Found this on a nut allergy webpage:
"In the most extreme cases, (which are rare), nut allergy sufferers can have a severe reaction after just touching any nut containing substance (a condition termed as contact anaphylaxis) – for example they may react after being kissed by someone wearing a lipstick that contains nut oil."

I volunteered at a daycare center years ago, and one of the 3 year olds was allergic to everything, from dairy to strawberries to nuts - and I remember that his doctor had to periodically check out the classroom to make sure that there was no nut products there, as this little boy was so severe that he could have a potentially deadly contact reaction.

I would think that parents who have children with this severe of a problem would be extremely over-cautious in regards to their child, and never even go near a strange dog, let alone let one lick it.

[ October 22, 2001: Message edited by: 3-greys-and-a-mutt ]

[Dixieland Dancer]

I agree! If I had a child with such a severe allergy, I would probably keep them at home in a sheltered environment or only let them out under the strictest of conditions. But just to be safe..... I will only let my dogs lick me when they have peanut butter!

[Golden Smiles]

Staci....thanks for the info about peanut butter, I found it quite informative!! When I was teaching 2nd grade, I had a child have a terrible reaction to peanuts from taking a sip out of a childs drink box that had just eaten a peanut butter sandwich! So YES, I CAN see how a dog lick, even after minutes of being done eating it, could cause a reation! I don't think it's possible to keep a child home from school, baseball games etc......it's just up to all of us to be more aware!! Thanks again!!