Why are severe peanut allergies such a new(ish) issue? Back in the day, peanuts were everywhere...I'm not trolling, I'm honestly curious.

Southwest serves peanuts on my 9am flights, is that not early morning?

Also, I HAVE seen them in action with the no peanuts thing...they actually made an announcement that someone was allergic and they'd be serving pretzels. What an airline, those sweet, goofy bastards.

love
roxy

I was thinking the very same thing as E. I do not remember nut allergies being a big thing when my kids were born in the early to mid 80's or even after that. In fact I don't remember nuts of any sort being a "thing" at all.

The population of our country is growing. More people means more people allergic to peanuts.Approximately 1.5 million people in the U.S. have peanut allergy, the leading cause of severe allergic reactions. Each year, thousands of people rush to hospital emergency rooms, and approximately 50 to 100 people die after accidentally eating peanuts. Strict avoidance is the only means of preventing an allergic reaction

Thank you everyone for your postings and your kind comments and good advise. I called Southwest Airlines a few minutes ago and they were extremely understanding and gave me a full refund for two tickets, even they were non-refundable!

Thank you Clarkgriswold for your posting. So many people are just not aware of how serious this allergy is. It's not just the suffocation from the swelling, but other causes of death are an extreme drop in blood pressure.

In response to E and Placeu2...I am 46 years old so I have been living with this allergy since I almost died when I was a toddler. I've had close calls throughout my life even though I have always been extremely cautious. I am thankful that school children these days don't have to worry as did. Now if only restaurants and airlines would get "on-board."

Thanks again everyone!

a friend's son is severely allergic to many things, including peanuts. she helps fundraise for the national allergy awareness group (can't remember what it is called). researchers/doctors actually do not know why allergies are on the rise. there are many theories, but none have panned out to be definitive. people blame everything from the huge increase in antibacterial products have caused immune systems to be less effective to the mom eating too much peanut butter during pregnancy. who knows, but it is really becoming a big issue for our society.

Because this posting is a way for others to be aware of the severity of this allergy. I want to add that the reason I've mentioned restaurants is because it's not just peanuts, it's the peanut oil that many restaurants use when cooking as well.

DJCV, you are so right about the peanut oil! I have a restaurant, where we use peanut oil exclusively, and although we brag about it on our menu, it was not "posted" on the wall until a couple of years ago when an allergic customer explained it all to me. Also, when a customer tells me they are allergic to shellfish, I explain that the cooking surfaces (the grill or the fryer) may have had shellfish on them, and so a severely allergic person must really be a very careful detective!

I once read about a child who went to a neighbor's house. The neighbor was making soup, and the child passed through the kitchen and DIED as a result of his allergy! This is serious stuff.