Passengers with a Severe Nut Allergy
Discussion
On a recent flight back from Nuremberg, after boarding the plane an announcement was made that someone on the plane had a severe nut allergy and therefore we should all refrain from consuming any nuts or nut derived products. I started to question it in my head.
This person would have navigated their way through a busy and compact departure lounge; before that there would have been a long walk from security which wasn't that busy to be fair, but for some reason online check-in was not available so everyone on that BA flight would have queued at the two service desks. If the allergy was that severe, would they have been escorted? Further questioning and research since the event reveals there is no evidence that nut allergens are easily transmitted through the air on planes. The most likely way to be exposed to nuts during air travel is by touching contaminated surfaces, such as tray tables, seat backs, or entertainment screens. As far as I know and could see, the plane landed, passengers disembarked, the bins were emptied, new refreshments were loaded and antimacassars in business class straightened etc. In a short period of time the next lot of passengers - us - started to board. No time to sanitise or deep clean anything.
I'm struggling to understand the risk to that person. Was it a case of BA just being cautious so that they didn't have to deal with a reaction? If that passenger was carrying an EpiPen then surely it's a self managed situation given that they would have walked through a busy airport?
Further advice from the internet goes:
Here are some tips for passengers with nut allergies:
Clean your seat: Use a wet wipe or antibacterial wipe to clean your seat area as soon as you sit down.
Board early: If you can, board the plane early so you have time to clean your seat.
Bring extra adrenaline auto-injectors: Depending on your destination, you may need more than two adrenaline auto-injectors.
Food-induced allergic reactions are much less common on flights than on the ground. One review estimated that there is only one accidental allergic reaction for every 1.5 million passengers on a commercial flight.
As it happens, I had a packet of peanuts I'd bought with my duty free (which wasn't really that cheap btw) and as much as I was tempted to munch them on the sly, I thought better of it and settled for the corn nuts I was given with my bottle of water by the stewardess.
One of the lads I used to play footy with had a peanut allergy and he told me of a time when he bought a West Ham top from a market trader and couldn't wait to put it on. When he got back to his car, he put it on not knowing that the guy who bagged it for him had been eating peanuts moments earlier. That was enough to trigger a reaction and he ended up in hospital after he started to suffocate from asphyxiation. Thinking back, did my mate assume the market trader was eating nuts? How would have known, because if he did, surely swerve the purchase and don't chance it? Or does this mean that a reaction that severe could only have been through touching something contaminated? Oddly enough (for me) we had this conversation during an evening he and missus were over for dinner and I'd cooked something using peanut oil (which he said was okay).
I remember Ricky Gervais spoke about this subject in one of his standup shows. I'm not pissed off I wasn't allowed to eat my peanuts on a 90-minute flight but I just couldn't - and still can't - understand the issue if the allergens are not airborne and the stats suggest it doesn't affect that many people in that environment (because it's managed that way by the airline?).
Hoping to be educated (to stop me flicking peanuts around on my next flight /RickyGervais.)
This person would have navigated their way through a busy and compact departure lounge; before that there would have been a long walk from security which wasn't that busy to be fair, but for some reason online check-in was not available so everyone on that BA flight would have queued at the two service desks. If the allergy was that severe, would they have been escorted? Further questioning and research since the event reveals there is no evidence that nut allergens are easily transmitted through the air on planes. The most likely way to be exposed to nuts during air travel is by touching contaminated surfaces, such as tray tables, seat backs, or entertainment screens. As far as I know and could see, the plane landed, passengers disembarked, the bins were emptied, new refreshments were loaded and antimacassars in business class straightened etc. In a short period of time the next lot of passengers - us - started to board. No time to sanitise or deep clean anything.
I'm struggling to understand the risk to that person. Was it a case of BA just being cautious so that they didn't have to deal with a reaction? If that passenger was carrying an EpiPen then surely it's a self managed situation given that they would have walked through a busy airport?
Further advice from the internet goes:
Here are some tips for passengers with nut allergies:
Clean your seat: Use a wet wipe or antibacterial wipe to clean your seat area as soon as you sit down.
Board early: If you can, board the plane early so you have time to clean your seat.
Bring extra adrenaline auto-injectors: Depending on your destination, you may need more than two adrenaline auto-injectors.
Food-induced allergic reactions are much less common on flights than on the ground. One review estimated that there is only one accidental allergic reaction for every 1.5 million passengers on a commercial flight.
As it happens, I had a packet of peanuts I'd bought with my duty free (which wasn't really that cheap btw) and as much as I was tempted to munch them on the sly, I thought better of it and settled for the corn nuts I was given with my bottle of water by the stewardess.
One of the lads I used to play footy with had a peanut allergy and he told me of a time when he bought a West Ham top from a market trader and couldn't wait to put it on. When he got back to his car, he put it on not knowing that the guy who bagged it for him had been eating peanuts moments earlier. That was enough to trigger a reaction and he ended up in hospital after he started to suffocate from asphyxiation. Thinking back, did my mate assume the market trader was eating nuts? How would have known, because if he did, surely swerve the purchase and don't chance it? Or does this mean that a reaction that severe could only have been through touching something contaminated? Oddly enough (for me) we had this conversation during an evening he and missus were over for dinner and I'd cooked something using peanut oil (which he said was okay).
I remember Ricky Gervais spoke about this subject in one of his standup shows. I'm not pissed off I wasn't allowed to eat my peanuts on a 90-minute flight but I just couldn't - and still can't - understand the issue if the allergens are not airborne and the stats suggest it doesn't affect that many people in that environment (because it's managed that way by the airline?).
Hoping to be educated (to stop me flicking peanuts around on my next flight /RickyGervais.)
Glassman said:
I'm struggling to understand the risk to that person. Was it a case of BA just being cautious so that they didn't have to deal with a reaction? If that passenger was carrying an EpiPen then surely it's a self managed situation given that they would have walked through a busy airport?
My other half worked with a girl who had a severe nut allergy and despite having an EpiPen, it didn't negate her having to be taken off in an ambulance on more than one occasion. They worked, looking after children with brain injuries so families came and went. One time she opened a drawer in one of the kids rooms, accidentally touched an open Kinder Bueno wrapper that was enough to see her blue lighted to hospital. Another time was during a bonfire night event, someone put roast chestnuts on a barbecue (despite being advised not to), she was blue lighted to hospital on that occasion too. It seemed that she was highly allergic to anything airborne and not specific to peanuts but seemingly all of them.
Someone opening a pack of peanuts in a confined space like a plane would have been problematic and an EpiPen for her wouldn't have necessarily resolved an allergic reaction and not many ambulances at 30,000ft haha.
All that said, it's a hell of a thing to live with. Peanuts are a little more specific but literally any type of nut would set her off, so you literally had no idea when she was going to blow up like a puffer fish.
I've had the same thoughts as the OP.
It seems somewhat bizarre (to me) that the risk of peanuts on a plane seemingly only exists when people are actively eating peanuts.
Where in my experience, plane seats are pretty filthy, and if any of the last 20 passengers sat in that seat eating nuts, then it's likely that the seat area is covered in nut dust.
Shirley there is more of a risk from the seat being already covered in nut dust as opposed to someone eating nuts 10 rows away....
(although it does sound awfully serious when it does happen, so I never defy the ask to not eat nuts on a plane when requested)
It seems somewhat bizarre (to me) that the risk of peanuts on a plane seemingly only exists when people are actively eating peanuts.
Where in my experience, plane seats are pretty filthy, and if any of the last 20 passengers sat in that seat eating nuts, then it's likely that the seat area is covered in nut dust.
Shirley there is more of a risk from the seat being already covered in nut dust as opposed to someone eating nuts 10 rows away....
(although it does sound awfully serious when it does happen, so I never defy the ask to not eat nuts on a plane when requested)
My son is allergic to peanuts. We flew EasyJet a few years ago and they made an announcement which surprised us.
I must say Europe and the UK are much more switched on to allergies than Australia. We were handed a list of all the foods and the possible allergens at breakfast in a Premier Inn for example.
I must say Europe and the UK are much more switched on to allergies than Australia. We were handed a list of all the foods and the possible allergens at breakfast in a Premier Inn for example.
Glassman said:
On a recent flight back from Nuremberg, after boarding the plane an announcement was made that someone on the plane had a severe nut allergy and therefore we should all refrain from consuming any nuts or nut derived products. I started to question it in my head.
This person would have navigated their way through a busy and compact departure lounge; before that there would have been a long walk from security which wasn't that busy to be fair, but for some reason online check-in was not available so everyone on that BA flight would have queued at the two service desks. If the allergy was that severe, would they have been escorted? Further questioning and research since the event reveals there is no evidence that nut allergens are easily transmitted through the air on planes. The most likely way to be exposed to nuts during air travel is by touching contaminated surfaces, such as tray tables, seat backs, or entertainment screens. As far as I know and could see, the plane landed, passengers disembarked, the bins were emptied, new refreshments were loaded and antimacassars in business class straightened etc. In a short period of time the next lot of passengers - us - started to board. No time to sanitise or deep clean anything.
I'm struggling to understand the risk to that person. Was it a case of BA just being cautious so that they didn't have to deal with a reaction? If that passenger was carrying an EpiPen then surely it's a self managed situation given that they would have walked through a busy airport?
Further advice from the internet goes:
Here are some tips for passengers with nut allergies:
Clean your seat: Use a wet wipe or antibacterial wipe to clean your seat area as soon as you sit down.
Board early: If you can, board the plane early so you have time to clean your seat.
Bring extra adrenaline auto-injectors: Depending on your destination, you may need more than two adrenaline auto-injectors.
Food-induced allergic reactions are much less common on flights than on the ground. One review estimated that there is only one accidental allergic reaction for every 1.5 million passengers on a commercial flight.
As it happens, I had a packet of peanuts I'd bought with my duty free (which wasn't really that cheap btw) and as much as I was tempted to munch them on the sly, I thought better of it and settled for the corn nuts I was given with my bottle of water by the stewardess.
One of the lads I used to play footy with had a peanut allergy and he told me of a time when he bought a West Ham top from a market trader and couldn't wait to put it on. When he got back to his car, he put it on not knowing that the guy who bagged it for him had been eating peanuts moments earlier. That was enough to trigger a reaction and he ended up in hospital after he started to suffocate from asphyxiation. Thinking back, did my mate assume the market trader was eating nuts? How would have known, because if he did, surely swerve the purchase and don't chance it? Or does this mean that a reaction that severe could only have been through touching something contaminated? Oddly enough (for me) we had this conversation during an evening he and missus were over for dinner and I'd cooked something using peanut oil (which he said was okay).
I remember Ricky Gervais spoke about this subject in one of his standup shows. I'm not pissed off I wasn't allowed to eat my peanuts on a 90-minute flight but I just couldn't - and still can't - understand the issue if the allergens are not airborne and the stats suggest it doesn't affect that many people in that environment (because it's managed that way by the airline?).
Hoping to be educated (to stop me flicking peanuts around on my next flight /RickyGervais.)
I saw a news article (this morning I think) reporting on how Ryainair were going after disruptive passengers for damages after they caused the plane to be diverted. This person would have navigated their way through a busy and compact departure lounge; before that there would have been a long walk from security which wasn't that busy to be fair, but for some reason online check-in was not available so everyone on that BA flight would have queued at the two service desks. If the allergy was that severe, would they have been escorted? Further questioning and research since the event reveals there is no evidence that nut allergens are easily transmitted through the air on planes. The most likely way to be exposed to nuts during air travel is by touching contaminated surfaces, such as tray tables, seat backs, or entertainment screens. As far as I know and could see, the plane landed, passengers disembarked, the bins were emptied, new refreshments were loaded and antimacassars in business class straightened etc. In a short period of time the next lot of passengers - us - started to board. No time to sanitise or deep clean anything.
I'm struggling to understand the risk to that person. Was it a case of BA just being cautious so that they didn't have to deal with a reaction? If that passenger was carrying an EpiPen then surely it's a self managed situation given that they would have walked through a busy airport?
Further advice from the internet goes:
Here are some tips for passengers with nut allergies:
Clean your seat: Use a wet wipe or antibacterial wipe to clean your seat area as soon as you sit down.
Board early: If you can, board the plane early so you have time to clean your seat.
Bring extra adrenaline auto-injectors: Depending on your destination, you may need more than two adrenaline auto-injectors.
Food-induced allergic reactions are much less common on flights than on the ground. One review estimated that there is only one accidental allergic reaction for every 1.5 million passengers on a commercial flight.
As it happens, I had a packet of peanuts I'd bought with my duty free (which wasn't really that cheap btw) and as much as I was tempted to munch them on the sly, I thought better of it and settled for the corn nuts I was given with my bottle of water by the stewardess.
One of the lads I used to play footy with had a peanut allergy and he told me of a time when he bought a West Ham top from a market trader and couldn't wait to put it on. When he got back to his car, he put it on not knowing that the guy who bagged it for him had been eating peanuts moments earlier. That was enough to trigger a reaction and he ended up in hospital after he started to suffocate from asphyxiation. Thinking back, did my mate assume the market trader was eating nuts? How would have known, because if he did, surely swerve the purchase and don't chance it? Or does this mean that a reaction that severe could only have been through touching something contaminated? Oddly enough (for me) we had this conversation during an evening he and missus were over for dinner and I'd cooked something using peanut oil (which he said was okay).
I remember Ricky Gervais spoke about this subject in one of his standup shows. I'm not pissed off I wasn't allowed to eat my peanuts on a 90-minute flight but I just couldn't - and still can't - understand the issue if the allergens are not airborne and the stats suggest it doesn't affect that many people in that environment (because it's managed that way by the airline?).
Hoping to be educated (to stop me flicking peanuts around on my next flight /RickyGervais.)
Cynic in me thinks, if the flight crew ask everyone not to eat any nuts on board and some passenger decides to do it anyway, the airline could go after that passenger for the costs of having to make an emergency landing as a result of a passenger in anaphylactic shock
OP - I had very similar thoughts on a recent flight . Nut allergy announcements are getting more common, particularly on short haul bucket and spade flights (no idea why / perhaps Easy and Ryan just love to gold plate rules/caution). Never happened to me on a long haul flight. Last short haul the stuardesses had to explain each time someone tried to buy something that it contained nuts (Bueno being one of them).
I sat there, with an almond crioissant in a bag from the aiport wondering........ "if it's THAT vital (which it clearly can be) - why on earth do the nut allergist not tell everyone around them rather than being anonymous?". - we just get "someone on this flight". Im thinking that their immediate danger is their immediate locality.
No one said anything to me, so I quietly ate my croissant, keeping it in the bag, assuming if its life and death then whoever it was would have briefed us all when he/she sat down at the start of the flight. I did this out of a) hunger and b) the assumption in this paragraph and c) because I really dont believe it all any more with the current generation. Every bugger now has an "allergy". Even my sister claims one of her daughters has a peanut allergy - yet we never avoid any type of food ever when we all go out for dinner in restaurants. Everyone seems to all of a sudden be gluten intollerant and allergic to everything.
I was in a restaurant recently where the waitress did the usual, "any allergies" and one lady went, "yes, Im wheat intollerant". The waitress then said, "are you actually ALERGIC to wheat? becaue if you are, no probs, but we'll have to steralise a section of the kitchen, wash all teh utensils, wipe it all down, and then dedicate that area for just cooking for you - so you can see why we need to know"., "no, I'm not "allergic" as such, it just gives me a bit of a bloaty tummy".
I reckon the people on planes need to wear some kind of badge or another identifier so we all know to be super careful around them, rather than limiting food choices to the ENTIRE plane, including people sat at the opposite end of the plane. But that won't happen. The world we live in (Europe) is rapidly calibrating itself to regard the needs of the minority over the needs of the majority. Hence every single restaurant asks every single bloody meal, if you have an allergy, rather than people with allergies taking the responsibility to mention it when eating. Its all arse about face.
I sat there, with an almond crioissant in a bag from the aiport wondering........ "if it's THAT vital (which it clearly can be) - why on earth do the nut allergist not tell everyone around them rather than being anonymous?". - we just get "someone on this flight". Im thinking that their immediate danger is their immediate locality.
No one said anything to me, so I quietly ate my croissant, keeping it in the bag, assuming if its life and death then whoever it was would have briefed us all when he/she sat down at the start of the flight. I did this out of a) hunger and b) the assumption in this paragraph and c) because I really dont believe it all any more with the current generation. Every bugger now has an "allergy". Even my sister claims one of her daughters has a peanut allergy - yet we never avoid any type of food ever when we all go out for dinner in restaurants. Everyone seems to all of a sudden be gluten intollerant and allergic to everything.
I was in a restaurant recently where the waitress did the usual, "any allergies" and one lady went, "yes, Im wheat intollerant". The waitress then said, "are you actually ALERGIC to wheat? becaue if you are, no probs, but we'll have to steralise a section of the kitchen, wash all teh utensils, wipe it all down, and then dedicate that area for just cooking for you - so you can see why we need to know"., "no, I'm not "allergic" as such, it just gives me a bit of a bloaty tummy".
I reckon the people on planes need to wear some kind of badge or another identifier so we all know to be super careful around them, rather than limiting food choices to the ENTIRE plane, including people sat at the opposite end of the plane. But that won't happen. The world we live in (Europe) is rapidly calibrating itself to regard the needs of the minority over the needs of the majority. Hence every single restaurant asks every single bloody meal, if you have an allergy, rather than people with allergies taking the responsibility to mention it when eating. Its all arse about face.
Exactly.
A person with a nut allergy may have a reaction, people can live without a bag of nuts for a few hours to negate that risk, not a big deal.
The earlier poster who mentioned an almond croissant. After finishing said croissant, say he went to the toilet touching the handle to open the door. 5 minutes later someone with a severe allergy opens that very same door and has a reaction. It happens.
I know aircraft aren't completely cleaned all the time, but it lessens the risk.
A person with a nut allergy may have a reaction, people can live without a bag of nuts for a few hours to negate that risk, not a big deal.
The earlier poster who mentioned an almond croissant. After finishing said croissant, say he went to the toilet touching the handle to open the door. 5 minutes later someone with a severe allergy opens that very same door and has a reaction. It happens.
I know aircraft aren't completely cleaned all the time, but it lessens the risk.
Bill said:
This is the issue. One thing is unimportant, the other may be rare but the consequences are enormous.
apn said:
Exactly.
A person with a nut allergy may have a reaction, people can live without a bag of nuts for a few hours to negate that risk, not a big deal.
The earlier poster who mentioned an almond croissant. After finishing said croissant, say he went to the toilet touching the handle to open the door. 5 minutes later someone with a severe allergy opens that very same door and has a reaction. It happens.
I know aircraft aren't completely cleaned all the time, but it lessens the risk.
But the same could be said in the airport toilets. Or the taxi they took on the way there, or the train.A person with a nut allergy may have a reaction, people can live without a bag of nuts for a few hours to negate that risk, not a big deal.
The earlier poster who mentioned an almond croissant. After finishing said croissant, say he went to the toilet touching the handle to open the door. 5 minutes later someone with a severe allergy opens that very same door and has a reaction. It happens.
I know aircraft aren't completely cleaned all the time, but it lessens the risk.
Bill said:
This is the issue. One thing is unimportant, the other may be rare but the consequences are enormous.
If touching a toilet door handle with a remnant of nut is enough to kill them then they are not going to be flying?!
Edited by Griffith4ever on Friday 10th January 14:30
Griffith4ever said:
But the same could be said in the airport toilets. Or the taxi they took on the way there, or the train.
If touching a toilet door handle with a remnant of nut is enough to kill them then they are not going to be flying?!
On the ground medical help is minutes away, in the air it could be hours.If touching a toilet door handle with a remnant of nut is enough to kill them then they are not going to be flying?!
dundarach said:
I love nuts, just as much as I like playing with myself.
However, if it helps someone out for a couple of hours, I can resist both!
Is it really that much of a thing to ask, given serious medical issues for one and a whole ball ache of hassle for everyone else!
Exactly. At most a trivial inconvenience for you, potentially death for them.However, if it helps someone out for a couple of hours, I can resist both!
Is it really that much of a thing to ask, given serious medical issues for one and a whole ball ache of hassle for everyone else!
Only a true hero would eat their almond croissant knowing there was someone nearby who might die as a result.
I have had these allergy warnings on almost every flight I have made in the past 12mths - after only previously recalling may 2 in the previous 10yrs.
I do wonder if airlines are simply being overly cautious - US airlines JetBLue and Delta dont offer any complimentary stuff with included "standard" allergens for example.
I did make the error many years ago when my daughter was 2ish and she had never tried peanuts before and without really thinking gave her something with peanut in for the first time about 90mins into a 10hr flight. Thankfully all was fine, but it could have been disastrous - I realised my folly as she was happily munching away and spent the next few minutes with everything crossed!
I do wonder if airlines are simply being overly cautious - US airlines JetBLue and Delta dont offer any complimentary stuff with included "standard" allergens for example.
I did make the error many years ago when my daughter was 2ish and she had never tried peanuts before and without really thinking gave her something with peanut in for the first time about 90mins into a 10hr flight. Thankfully all was fine, but it could have been disastrous - I realised my folly as she was happily munching away and spent the next few minutes with everything crossed!
Sporky said:
Exactly. At most a trivial inconvenience for you, potentially death for them.
Precisely. And a massive incovenience for you when the flight gets diverted and you find yourself in Hamburg, for example, instead of Heathrow.Glassman said:
Food-induced allergic reactions are much less common on flights than on the ground. One review estimated that there is only one accidental allergic reaction for every 1.5 million passengers on a commercial flight.
This is an interesting statistic. It makes it sound rare, but the US FAA estimates that 3 million people a day fly. So that's two flights a day potentially being disrupted!I have a nut allergy, and while I've had several anaphylactic shocks (i.e. it's not a wimpy intolerance but a full-blown allergy) it's not as severe as some. I can be sitting next to someone eating peanuts and not have a reaction, although the smell repulses me. I always carry 2x EpiPens on a flight, just in case.
I've also never informed the airline, but maybe I should. After all, you could argue it would be partly my fault if we had to divert!
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