While I take your point about peanut allergies, I have to take exception to the comment on CFS. There actually is a difference between CFS and just being tired. I know being tired. I'm a single parent with 2 active grade schoolers. But my tired is not the tired of a colleague & friend with CFS. There's no doubt in my mind that without treatment, both CFS sufferers I know would have killed themselves years ago. Maybe CFS was diagnosed much 30 years ago is because those folks just slit their wrists or ate a shotgun. I don't know, but it seems like a big jump from peanut allergies to CFS.

As the mother of a daughter who nearly died after unknowingly eating a peanut butter filled m&m at a family charity benefit in New York City, I implore Ms. Bennett to step away from the glue gun and stop inhaling its contents.

I had an anaphylactic shock to Cipro seven years ago. I was alone and didn't realize it until I started having trouble breathing. I drove myself to the hospital and while the nurse screamed at me for not calling 911, the doctor measured my oxygen saturation and said if I had waited for the ambulance I would have been dead. She said I had two minutes to live when I walked in. So, it is a serious thing, however, I agree parents tend to go overboard. My doctor said my reaction was as serious as she'd ever seen, but I am still able to walk safely through Walgreens where Quinolones are dispensed and I assume Levequin dust must circulate like peanut dust in schools. People are allergic to a lot of things, it just isn't practical to ban them all. The peanut parents just have a better communications program. Those of us who at risk simply need to watch out for ourselves. After about the fourth grade, I think kids ought to be able to do that without too much trouble.

Bravo Laura!! Well said!

Laura - Thank you! It has gotten so bad that my 10 yr old actually thinks she is allergic to peanuts when she isn't. What will cause death for her is crustaceans so what does her school bring in and plop next to her - crayfish. And who got to stay in school and get an education - the crayfish. My daughter was sent home. When she had a complete anxiety attack at their proximity they thought she was having a reaction and almost gave her an epi which would have really done a number on her adrenaline rush.. You just have to wonder - has the world gone mad?

Laura, I gotta tell you I have been wondering the same thing. I know there were some kids in school who were swept up with the dropped and dried spaghetti, but I just assumed that was because of the big L on their foreheads. I didn't dream it was from a food allergy--we didn't know such a thing existed except for the brussel sprouts.

Yes, yes I know--before you blow a gasket--there are kids with serious allergies and they are more than problematic. That said the hysteria of the peanut plague is just one more of the many bits of padding we are putting around us to cushion us from living. Flyoverland is exactly right--learn to communicate rather than do the auto-BAN. Thanks Laura

Ms. Bennett,
I recently wrote a Letter to the Editor in response to a column by Joel Stein of the Los Angeles Times entitled "This Allergy is Kind of Nutty" in which he too claims that children with food allergies actually have "...a parent who needs to feel special". I will restate several points here in response to your column.
1. You (and Mr. Stein) are correct, that food allergies as we know them today did not exist when we were children. Which is why current research is looking into several possible explanations: genetically modified food - particularly soy and corn, overly processed food - which relies heavily on soy and corn ingredients, increased use of vaccinations, anti-biotics, disinfectants and petroleum based products. All of these factors are indigenous to western, developed countries. It is worth noting that families dealing with autism, asthma and ADD/ADHD - which have seen similar increases in diagnoses over the last ten years, are also very interested in these lines of research.
2. Mr. Stein also mentions in his column that "food allergies kill about as many people as lightning strikes each year". While that may be true, it is a silly argument. We are able to prevent the possible death of our eight year old daughter by supporting her schools decision to restrict peanuts, by reading food labels, by carrying epi-pens with us at all times and when necessary, using the epi-pen. People who die from lightning strikes don't have those options.
3. Diagnosing food allergies is a complicated process involving endless blood tests, skin tests, food challenges and questionnaires. One typical recommendation from doctors is that if you have one child with a peanut allergy, for example, be careful with your other children. They are at greater risk of having a reaction, which may be why your child's classmate had to be careful.
4. With regards to the numbers of people with peanut v. shrimp allergies, the issue in a school setting is really about cleanliness. It is far easier to clean up a piece of shrimp than it is to clean up peanut butter, which is sticky and often leaves behind a residue that can work its way into a young child's mouth.
5.. The main goal of parents with food allergic children is to show them how to lead as normal a life as possible. Nothing special about that. Nor is there anything special about reading every label every time you grocery shop, about making endless amounts of homemade food to limit risks, about dealing with airlines that serve peanuts and getting permission to carry epi-pens on board, about watching your child not be invited to parties, sleep-overs, etc because of her food allergies. I promise you I do not feel special. Just very sad.
6. Finally, how do you go to sleep at night after writing just one column which manages to make fun of people who deal with food allergies, lactose intolerance, restless leg syndrome, Munchausen-by-Proxy and chronic fatigue syndrome?

Do you and Mr. Stein raise a fair point about over reacting in the face of a threat to a child? Possibly. That said, parent to parent, if you were to ask me to take a precaution of any kind with one of your children, I would be happy to do so. I would not challenge you or mock you.

The one great thing about having a child with food allergies is that it provides us with a litmus test for kindness. We have been moved to tears by families that ask me to train them on how to use the epi-pen, who routinely stock 'safe snacks' in their house for when my daughter visits, who always ask before they act. Who practice true kindness in a media world full of ill informed sarcasm.

Anne-Marie Hesser
Greenwich CT

Oh to be so naive. I miss being that naive. Sure, you can convince me you've met a nut somewhere along the way who invented a medical condition for their child to garner attention. If there can be dog psychiatrists then anything is possible. But if you had a child with an anaphylaxis reaction to an allergen, you'd be a little hyped up about it. You'd be vigilant. A peanut is as life threatening for one child as a handgun is for another. Once you understand that - if you ever really understand that - then you won't judge these families so harshly. We all love our children and do what we can to protect them.

As a doctor for 15 years I have never seen a anaphylatic reaction to anything a person did not ingest, inhale or have direct contact with. To completely ban peanut butter from schools is unnecessary.Peanut butter is a cheap source of protein and maybe the only kind of lunch a mom maybe able to send to school. Also most kids outgrow food allergies.

Laura, I am with you on your post. You're not saying you don't take allergies seriously, but having lived long enough to claim Kukla status (the "G' word is not allowed in my home), I'm in total agreement. It's great to be vigilant, but placing fear on children who do not have an allergy, but "may develop one" is incomprehensible to me. Thanks for voicing common sense.

I always like when the older generation (even the soft ones, like the author) does a "These kids today" article. Back in my day, why we had to only use a nanny, we didn't have private chef.

I am only 24, I don't have any friends with peanut allergies, and if they had gone to my school they probably would have been chased around and taunted with Reese's cups. We played on a rusty metal playground with broken beer bottles all around. We were tough.

Way to go Laura. You know what else is completely rediculous! Exercise induced asthma. When I was kid if you didn't feel like going to PE you either cut class of were called out as a lazy bum. WTF!

Best. Article. Ever.

Hilarious! I LOVE reading your columns. As a student teacher in a high school in Michigan, I see this kind of ridiculousness all the time. Parents these days have no sense of humor...everything is deathly serious when it comes to their kids (I think to give them a feeling of power and a sense of importance). The result--kids who are terrified to try new things or even go outdoors.

We had a classmate in grade school who was allergic to eggs. I blamed Nixon, who was President at the time. Anyway, her mother made her special cakes when folks had birthdays and the class had a party and that was that.

But guess what? Your little apple blossoms grow up. There were girls in high school who were constantly pushing whatever boundaries nature had dealt them (diabetes, allergies, etc...) with mixed results. Some would get hives or pass out but some would discover that whatever ailments they thought they had weren't as serious as they had been led to believe.

Nice piece. As a recently retired elementary school principal, I share some of Laura's frustration with the propensity for overreaction and hyperbole that some parents & school administrators exhibit these days. Our school dealt with major changes in cafeteria procedures so we could accommodate a kindergartner with a peanut allergy - i.e., where he could sit, who could sit near him (depending on their lunch box contents), type of disinfectant cleaner used to clean his table, etc. We also survived the two-year hot dog ban that our system instituted when a student in a neighboring school system tragically choked to death when he tried to swallow half a hot dog on a dare. That was much more a supervision issue, but the hot dogs were blamed.

I don't think Laura is dismissing the valid efforts that educators or parents make to keep children, or anyone else, safe. But there is a lot of quasi-hysteria out there, and some people seem to look for any opportunity to be part of a "crisis." This piece simply calls for less overreaction & more rationality. Thank you.

I nodded my head in avid agreement until I read the last CFS comment. I grew up with a sister who had it, and it is pure heck!!! I highly encourage you to read up on it before making light of it. Just because the medical community hasn't found a definitive reason for CFS, doesn't mean it doesn't exist or is in one's head.

Regarding CFS - it is indeed a serious and under-funded (in terms of research) disease afflicting primarily women, so I can understand your point. But generally tired women claiming to have CFS is much the same as people telling you they have the flu rather than admit to a common cold, and both do a great disservice to the very serious diseases they so lightly invoke.

As for the rest - right on!

You are going to get killed by parents with stories of near-death allergic experiences, and of course, but my child has peanut allergy diagnosis and I'm with you...it's insane...If my son is so horrifically allergic to peanuts, first experienced this at age 3, I want to know why he never reacted for 3 years as his 3-year older brother chomped down peanut butter and jelly sandwiches right next to him...I believe that the severity of the possible reaction- which I acknowledge to be death- is causing the overreaction and panic, understandably.I had the worst food and pollen allergies of anyone I have ever met, but it seemed I was never at risk of losing my life.

AMEN...this entire generation of Kids is being brought up to believe that they should be afraid of EVERYTHING and the adults are to blame.

You know what, I know people that are highly allergic to bee stings...what's next, no outdoor time in the srping?

It's sad that while there may indeed be one or two children per school district that have severe allergies, ALL the children in the school are forced to modify their eating habits to accomodate them. Give me a break with all of this already. Maybe if these parents didn't coddle little sally pigtails to such absurd lengths, these children would grow up into fully functional adults and not excuse ridden, me first types.

I ate peanuts in school growing up and so did the rest of my school...last I checked, no-one had died. Some kids just stopped eating them if they were allergic (though I can't recall a SINGLE kid holding an epi pen..EVER) I guess my school was just reckless and didn't care about the welfare of the kids they watched over...

now excuse me while I get my Son's PB&J ready for lunch...

Ignorance is not bliss and it's even better to get your facts straight. The most prevalent of life threatening allergies is to tree nuts and peanuts. Of the 150 deaths a year caused by allergies, half are from tree nuts and peanuts. The study that determined that gradual exposure to nuts might build a persons tolerance, considered it an experimental treatment. Very few of the participants were actually considered cured. The initial amounts used were equivalent to 1/1000 of a peanut not the size of a sandwich.

If you had a peanut allergy when you were a child you probably wouldn't tell the other kids because you would have been made fun of or worse, chased by some peanut butter. That's why you did not know about them.

Also, back then, allergies were considered a weakness. Today, allergies are seen as disabilities and schools are required to accommodate for them.

There is so much more knowledge available to us today than when you were a child. As a society and as parents most of us are becoming much less ignorant through the increase in our ability to communicate to each other. Like today maybe you didn't know that it's no longer okay to make fun of someone's disability. There, not so ignorant now, are you. Happy?

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_81734.html

I remember the case here in canada, about a girl who died after her boyfriend kiss her in the evening aftr having a PB sandwich at lunch....

This comment has been removed by The Daily Beast's editors.

I think you are funny, but like Buffalonian, I too take exception to a few things. CFS is real. I should know...I had to quit my job after getting mono and it developing into CFS. It wasn't just that I was lazy. I literally couldn't raise my head off the pillow. And since then I have increased sensitivities and have gone into anaphylactic shot. I carry an EPI-pen. I don't have children, but I wouldn't wish these allergies on anyone. I do think the parents who choose prophylactic treatment over allergies that don't exist are nuts. But if I were you I wouldn't make a comparison between being a mom and having CFS. Because as anyone with CFS would tell you, its not fun to be made a punchline of.

Now wait a second. I agree with her on any parent who somehow has the time to invent and manage an allergy for their child. But this peanut allergy issue is real and serious. I would have respected her article if she actually showed some research that explained why there are so many more peanut allergic children today. Believe it or not, kids with this allergy really do need to avoid contact with peanuts, and it is easy to accidentally feed somebody something without knowing they are allergic or knowing the contents of the food.

I have a child with Type 1 Diabetes and Celiac disease. We actually do depend on the school to help us manage her disease.

I don't know why there are so many more incidents of these severe allergies. This article didn't change that at all, but instead it just complained about a reality as if it would go away if we ignored it.