BMJ: Fear of nuts creating hysteria of epidemic proportions

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Public release date: 9-Dec-2008

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-12/bmj-fon120808.php

Contact: Davies

rdavies@...

44-9

BMJ-British Medical Journal

Fear of nuts creating hysteria of epidemic proportions

Observations column: This allergies hysteria is just nuts, BMJ Online

Measures imposed to reduce exposure to nuts are often based on

irrational fears of nut allergies and are becoming increasingly

sensationalist, according to a doctor on bmj.com today.

A peanut on the floor of a school bus leading to evacuation and

decontamination for fear that it might be eaten by the 10 year old

passengers, and schools declaring themselves " nut free " by banning nuts,

peanut butter, homebaked goods and any foods without ingredient labels,

are just some examples cited in this article.

According to Professor Nicolas Christakis from Harvard Medical School,

there is no evidence that any of these extreme restrictions work better

than more circumscribed policies or that they are worth the money and

disruptions they create.

In the US, 150 people die each year from food allergies. This is

compared to the 50 who die from bee stings, the 100 who die from

lightening strikes, the 45,000 who die in motor vehicle accidents, and

the 10,000 who are hospitalised for traumatic brain injury from playing

sport. But these issues do not incur such extreme reactions, such as

calling for an end to sport.

Christakis says that the " gross over-reaction to the magnitude of the

threat " is very similar to mass psychogenic illness (MPI), previously

known as epidemic hysteria.

Often seen occurring in small towns, schools and factories, these

outbreaks of MPI involve healthy people in a flow of anxiety, most often

triggered by a fear of contamination. Being around individuals who are

anxious heightens others' anxiety.

These extreme measures to reduce exposure to nuts are fuelling anxiety

in parents, leading to more sensitisation, and creating the very

epidemic they are designed to stop. A recent study has suggested that

early exposure to peanuts actually reduces, rather than increases the

risk of allergy.

Christakis concludes by calling for a level-headed strategy to deal with

this phenomenon before it spirals out of control.

--

ne Holden, MS, RD

" Ask the Parkinson Dietitian " http://www.parkinson.org/

" Eat well, stay well with Parkinson's disease "

" Parkinson's disease: Guidelines for Medical Nutrition Therapy "

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