Almost kicked off FLIGHT! Please help

[Grumpy's Gal]

[QUOTE



I'm also curious about the diabetic comments... some PP have used the example that a diabetic person has to have peanut butter crackers (or something with PB) to save their lives if their BS drops too low. My diabetic Aunt takes candy bars and drinks sugary soda's in those situations... not peanut butter, in particular. Just something w/sugar. Do some peoples' doctors specifically tell them only PB? And why?[/QUOTE]

my nephew is hypoglycemic and eats peanuts and peanut butter to keep his blood sugar constant or help when it's going low. He doesn't eat any sugar. So not all people with sugar problems are diabetic and not all can eat sugar to help when they are having problems.

 

[Eeyores Butterfly]

I absolutely agree. I would hope that there would be a compromise so neither has to suffer.




I bolded because yes, there are medical issues where missing a snack or meal can be life threatening and have severe health consequences. Ask anyone who is an insulin dependent diabetic. They can't miss meals etc. It will put their health at risk and it can be very life threatening. There are a host of other medical problems that require a person to eat to avoid illness.
I personally don't travel with peanut products simply because I know that there are so many people that are allergic nowadays. I just think that while I will try to accomodate anyone the best way I can, you can't assume that it is no big deal for someone to miss a meal or snack. It can be. JMHO.

This is actually a misconception. With older insulins, this was the case. But with newer insulins and a basal/bolus routine this is pretty much no longer true. Not that there isn't somebody out there that needs it, but the idea that all diabetics must eat on a very specific schedule is generally no longer true.

[QUOTE



I'm also curious about the diabetic comments... some PP have used the example that a diabetic person has to have peanut butter crackers (or something with PB) to save their lives if their BS drops too low. My diabetic Aunt takes candy bars and drinks sugary soda's in those situations... not peanut butter, in particular. Just something w/sugar. Do some peoples' doctors specifically tell them only PB? And why?

my nephew is hypoglycemic and eats peanuts and peanut butter to keep his blood sugar constant or help when it's going low. He doesn't eat any sugar. So not all people with sugar problems are diabetic and not all can eat sugar to help when they are having problems.[/QUOTE]


A lot of people (myself included) are told to make sure you have protein as it slows down the absorption of glucose and prevents a sort of roller coaster effect. I have been told that if I go low, after treating with a fast acting form of sugar, nuts are a good thing to follow up to keep myself on a more even keel. There are other forms of protein, but nuts are the most transportable. However, I personally would not have a problem with being asked to refrain. I can't speak for everybody else.

 

[mfd25wife]

I do get sick if I don't eat every couple of hours. I do tend to like nuts because they are easy and stay with me where sugar foods won't. If all I had was nuts and someone close was allergic, I would try to find a way to move to eat very quickly, wash up in the restroom, and return to my seat. It may not be possible, but maybe the FA could work with someone. One one recent flight, I got sick from a migraine and needed a phenergan shot. I spoke to the FA and they let my friend and I go into the galley for her to give it to me. It's not the same thing, but it made me think that if a person talked to the FA, maybe there could be a compromise. I guess I never thought about the allergens being airborne. I will have to think about snacks and meals more the next time I fly.

 

[dismom2]

This is actually a misconception. With older insulins, this was the case. But with newer insulins and a basal/bolus routine this is pretty much no longer true. Not that there isn't somebody out there that needs it, but the idea that all diabetics must eat on a very specific schedule is generally no longer true.



my nephew is hypoglycemic and eats peanuts and peanut butter to keep his blood sugar constant or help when it's going low. He doesn't eat any sugar. So not all people with sugar problems are diabetic and not all can eat sugar to help when they are having problems.

A lot of people (myself included) are told to make sure you have protein as it slows down the absorption of glucose and prevents a sort of roller coaster effect. I have been told that if I go low, after treating with a fast acting form of sugar, nuts are a good thing to follow up to keep myself on a more even keel. There are other forms of protein, but nuts are the most transportable. However, I personally would not have a problem with being asked to refrain. I can't speak for everybody else.[/QUOTE]


Thanks for the explaination. I knew about diabetics and the need for sugar at times, but wasn't sure what the nuts were for. I don't think my Aunt eats nuts because of her teeth.

 

[Christine]

I have to wonder if some of these parents just assume that the possiblility of airbourne peanut dust, or the mere smell of it on someone will kill their child, or have they had real past experience with their child having a "life threatening" reaction in those circumstances? Just curious. Is it based on fact, or fear?

For me, it is a combination of fact and fear.

There was a study done in the 1990s on roughly 60+ patients that had a reaction to peanuts while in flight. The study determined what was the cause of the reaction. The majority of the causes were due to consumption of a food product that had peanuts in it, the second cause was in children picking up/touching loose peanuts that were on the plane. The final group of reactors (the smallest) group were due to airborne inhalation and skin contact with the product that was on the plane somewhere on the plane.

Noteworthy, is that none of the 60+ people died but one portion of them had to received medical treatment in flight, while the other had to receive more treatment post-flight.

Now, like you, we are pretty loose with our peanut restrictions at home. We have PB in the house, my husband is the one who eats it, I don't care much for it but I do love a Reese's now and again and will eat them. My son lunches with his classmates at a table where PB&J is served and does everything else a normal child does.

What we cannot "replicate" at home just to test it out is a confined space with poor ventilation, and MANY people eating loose peanuts. I honestly don't know how he'll react so I have to look at things like the study information I provided above and make some choices based on that. I also have to take into account that, on his allergy tests, he exhibits one of the more severe reactions. This test is only a predictor of how he might react given the right (or wrong) circumstances.

He did react one time on a plane by his legs breaking out in rashes after he sat on the seat of the plane. But he has eczema anyway and, quite honestly, anything could have done it but, really, that type of reaction is not a common occurence with him when he sits on strange seats so I concluded that some allergen made contact with his skin. He wears pants on the plane now.

I also wanted to add that 14 years ago, when we first learned of his allergy and for many years after that, we did NOT fly with him. As parents of a young child, understandably, we were not as laid back as we are now, plus we had doctors being VERY serious about it. And at that time, the airlines were not doing anything about flights that I am aware of. My son's first trip to Disney was when he was almost 7. We never felt we could go before that (with him) because we didn't feel that he was going to be safe on a flight. Once the airlines started making policy on this issue (not at OUR request), we felt like "Hey, maybe this is something we can try." And of course, Disney is wonderful with allergies. That's pretty much why we don't go anywhere else.

 

[dismom2]

For me, it is a combination of fact and fear.

There was a study done in the 1990s on roughly 60+ patients that had a reaction to peanuts while in flight. The study determined what was the cause of the reaction. The majority of the causes were due to consumption of a food product that had peanuts in it, the second cause was in children picking up/touching loose peanuts that were on the plane. The final group of reactors (the smallest) group were due to airborne inhalation and skin contact with the product that was on the plane somewhere on the plane.

Noteworthy, is that none of the 60+ people died but one portion of them had to received medical treatment in flight, while the other had to receive more treatment post-flight.

Now, like you, we are pretty loose with our peanut restrictions at home. We have PB in the house, my husband is the one who eats it, I don't care much for it but I do love a Reese's now and again and will eat them. My son lunches with his classmates at a table where PB&J is served and does everything else a normal child does.

What we cannot "replicate" at home just to test it out is a confined space with poor ventilation, and MANY people eating loose peanuts. I honestly don't know how he'll react so I have to look at things like the study information I provided above and make some choices based on that. I also have to take into account that, on his allergy tests, he exhibits one of the more severe reactions. This test is only a predictor of how he might react given the right (or wrong) circumstances.

He did react one time on a plane by his legs breaking out in rashes after he sat on the seat of the plane. But he has eczema anyway and, quite honestly, anything could have done it but, really, that type of reaction is not a common occurence with him when he sits on strange seats so I concluded that some allergen made contact with his skin. He wears pants on the plane now.

I also wanted to add that 14 years ago, when we first learned of his allergy and for many years after that, we did NOT fly with him. As parents of a young child, understandably, we were not as laid back as we are now, plus we had doctors being VERY serious about it. And at that time, the airlines were not doing anything about flights that I am aware of. My son's first trip to Disney was when he was almost 7. We never felt we could go before that (with him) because we didn't feel that he was going to be safe on a flight. Once the airlines started making policy on this issue (not at OUR request), we felt like "Hey, maybe this is something we can try." And of course, Disney is wonderful with allergies. That's pretty much why we don't go anywhere else.

re: the bolded part above--

Just out of curiosity, when your son had his allergy testing, was there a scale between one to ten on the severity level, or something like that? The place we went just puts lines (a straight line with a cross on it, like a "t" next to the things she tested positive for allergies. Some of the things she was tested for have one line, some have more. I don't know if more lines means more severe, and how many lines is the limit. The woman doing the testing said they measure the size of the hives that develope (she did take out a ruler type object and measure each bump) and very small hives did not even get written down. A person on one site said that her child showed "severely allergic". Is that just determined by the size of the hives a person gets when tested? Or, is there some other way? They did test with a needle on a couple things, confirming a cat allergy for one. She's always at her friends house with cats and claims nothing bad happens. I don't quite understand it all. I am allergic to the grass in my yard, but at most, it makes me itch and makes my nose run. How does one know "how" allergic someone is, other than personal experience? I suppose I should start a new topic since I'm veering off.... sorry. Just curious.

 

[Christine]

re: the bolded part above--

Just out of curiosity, when your son had his allergy testing, was there a scale between one to ten on the severity level, or something like that? The place we went just puts lines (a straight line with a cross on it, like a "t" next to the things she tested positive for allergies. Some of the things she was tested for have one line, some have more. I don't know if more lines means more severe, and how many lines is the limit. The woman doing the testing said they measure the size of the hives that develope (she did take out a ruler type object and measure each bump) and very small hives did not even get written down. A person on one site said that her child showed "severely allergic". Is that just determined by the size of the hives a person gets when tested? Or, is there some other way? They did test with a needle on a couple things, confirming a cat allergy for one. She's always at her friends house with cats and claims nothing bad happens. I don't quite understand it all. I am allergic to the grass in my yard, but at most, it makes me itch and makes my nose run. How does one know "how" allergic someone is, other than personal experience? I suppose I should start a new topic since I'm veering off.... sorry. Just curious.

There are two types of tests--the skin prick test and a blood test.

For the skin prick test, the wheal is measured. As far as I know, the measurement does not go above a 4. My son always gets measured at 4+++ whatever that means. His wheal/hive is one of the largest they've seen for peanut. It's pretty big. But, actually, his wheal/hive for Timothy grass was even worse.

On the blood tests, there *may* be a number given and based on your number you are thrown into a range. When my son had a blood test, he fell into the range of "severe" for shellfish, and "moderate" for peanut. When his allergist saw the "moderate" for peanut, she talked about doing an oral challenge. But first, she wanted to do a skin prick prior to the oral challenge. She she saw the wheal/hive he developed on the skin prick, she backed WAY off on doing an oral challenge. She apparently believes that a skin prick test provides more of an indicator of how a person might react upon ingestion than a blood test does.

As for Timothy grass, I'm not sure if we even have that type of grass. I do know that my son can be outside with no problems but if he sits in grass, touches grass, or even tries to mow the law, his arms and legs will break out.

 

[Mkrop]

I've personally never been on a plane with a cat. I usually check the flight beforehand when I book. I usually fly SWA and I think they don't allow them anyway.

The closest answer/example I have is I am dating a person who lives in a house with 3 cats. In the year we have been together, I have never been able to stay in his house for more than 10-15 minutes before I stop being able to breathe. We make it work, he always comes to my house. The cats aren't his, thankfully. So for me, avoidance/prevention is key. Keeping my epipen & benadryl on me at all times is my second course of action and making sure wherever I am, if there is a cat present, that I will be able to get up and move away if need be, preferably outside.

If I wound up on a flight where there was a cat, I'd talk to the airline about why that happened after my noting my allergy. Then I'd book another flight. It certainly would not be worth the risk for me to fly with a cat.

They do now!

http://www.southwest.com/travel_center/animals.html

So given your allergy, do you still feel the same way towards those allergic to peanuts. Because I would think it would be no big deal now for you and your cat allergy to move your seat, or get off the plane and take another flight

 

[LaraK]

There are two types of tests--the skin prick test and a blood test.

There's also a third type of allergy test for kids with delayed reactions which is called a patch test. For kids with eosinophilic disorders the reactions to the food are delayed and the damage takes longer to become apparent. The skin prick test can test for the IgE reactions, but is not fully accurate to the long-term damage.

 

[surfergirl602]

OMG - I am so sorry this happened to you. I would be taking this to the news!!!!!! Take it to the media because you should NOT have been treated like this! A life threatening situation is not a joke! I am outraged for you!

 

[surfergirl602]

Can you son get sick from just looking at peanuts? If they were on the floor and he wasn't eating them how would he have got sick

Many children have airborne peanut allergies. by people opening up the packets and releasing particles in the air, he could breathe them in and have a severe reaction. Plus, of the recycled air in planes.

ETA: I didn't realize that there were 28 pages on this thread, so I'm sure this has been posted a hundred times already.

 

[ExPirateShopGirl]

And, at the end of the day (and 28 pages)...

It is always your responsibility to manage your allergies and those of your child(ren). No airline guarantees an allergen-free flight nor can they. Any accommodation made by an airline is done so as a courtesy only, and your fellow passengers are under no obligation whatsoever to comply, though most will.

Caveat viator.

 

[kaytieeldr]

OMG - I am so sorry this happened to you. I would be taking this to the news!!!!!!

Overly-dramatic, and overly drastic, reaction to what is, in truth, poor treatment by ONE employee of a company toward ONE customer.

 

[JerseyMamaBear]

wow, how unprofessional and rude of them. Im sorry you had to go through that.

 

[JerseyMamaBear]

This thread is just sad. I can't imagine a child's life is less important than the snacks that people hold so dear.

I hear ya, sad

 

[LKHomemail]

I have flown a lot and there are some really lousy airline employees out there. I would send the letter because it will make you feel better. I do not think that the airline will do anything other than send a form letter apologizing.

I do not know much about food allergies , but wonder if a thread to moms with parents of kids with allergies might be helpful ? How do these moms manage ? ensure a safe environment for their kids ? Do they have any tips that might help you ?

Sorry that the airline had to treat you and your family so poorly. It happens sometimes. Know that there will be other times , when you will find an airline person that goes out of their way and wows you. There are some bad apples out there , but , the rest of the orchard can be great.

 

[kaytieeldr]

I do not know much about food allergies , but wonder if a thread to moms with parents of kids with allergies might be helpful ? How do these moms manage ? ensure a safe environment for their kids ? Do they have any tips that might help you ?

There's a subforum on the disABILITIES board to discuss non-Disney issues. I'm sure there are DISers there who can help!

 

[crazytp93]

I am very sorry you have to go through that. My brother also has a peanut allergy, and when we flew Southwest in April, peanuts were served, but he does not have that serious an allergy where if he smells it he can start having an attack. Only if he consumes it will he start reacting. I can only imagine the fear you and your son felt when you saw the peanuts on the ground.

I think that it is unacceptable and unprofessional at what the airline put you through. Especially employee John Doe, who acted immature and downright rude. I hope the appropriate actions are taken against him.

My best of luck to you.

 

[fey_spirit]

Peanut Allergies are often a matter of Airborne Allergens
Also, who cares... dude clean the plane allergies or not.
Just leaving food laying around on the floor is disgusting.

Not to mention it gave the employee in question no right to speak to her in that manner.

Can you son get sick from just looking at peanuts? If they were on the floor and he wasn't eating them how would he have got sick

 

[ginna74]

Overly-dramatic, and overly drastic, reaction to what is, in truth, poor treatment by ONE employee of a company toward ONE customer.

lol so it is ok as long as only one employee did it...with that logic law suits should be way down, jails should be way empty