Generality
In the United States, peanut allergy is:
- The most frequent food allergy
- The first cause of death from food allergy
- Have an overview of what are potentially allergenic foods, so as to exclude them from feeding the baby up to a more suitable age
- Carefully read food labels, since it is not uncommon for products such as peanuts (or its derivatives) to be used as ingredients in foods for early childhood
- Knowing how to recognize an anaphylactic reaction and intervene promptly by calling 118 and immediately carrying out the essential first aid maneuvers.
peanuts
Peanuts are dehulled seeds of Arachis hypogaea, an annual herbaceous legume of South American origin imported by the Portuguese into Europe in the 16th century AD; despite being a legume, peanuts (also called American peanuts ) have a chemical-nutritional profile much more similar to that of achenes ; therefore they are also placed in the food category of dried fruit .
Peanuts can be eaten toasted and peeled (often salted), or in the form of derivatives; The most common peanut-based refined foods / derivatives are: peanut oil, peanut butter (hydrogenated), peanut flour and paste (in the food industry).
Causes and Symptoms
Peanut allergy is triggered by the body's reaction to two proteins contained in them; the symptoms of peanut allergy are mainly small, for example: hives, asthma and gastrointestinal disorders . However, it is necessary to specify that, being an immune-mediated reaction, peanut allergy can trigger a real anaphylactic reaction which, if not diagnosed and moderated pharmacologically, can induce a state of shock until death .
NB . Experimental research on the production of GMO peanuts, without the 2 proteins responsible for food allergy, is underway.
As with other allergies, peanut allergy must also be prevented by excluding them TOTALLY and PERMANENTLY from the diet (including derivatives); it is advisable to pay particular attention to packaged foods (sweets, sauces and snacks) and to ethnic Chinese culinary preparations. Note that since this is an adverse reaction of the body to certain proteins, seasoning oils and fats SHOULD NOT be potentially allergenic; however, ESPECIALLY in peanut oils extracted in COLD (although qualitatively better than REFINED), it is possible that there are some peptide traces sufficient to create discomfort for the hyper-sensitive organism.
Peanut allergy may be related to cross-reactivity to other legumes, such as: beans, peas, chickpeas, broad beans, pans, carobs, soybeans, tamarind, guar gum, gum arabic and licorice; not only, there seems to be also a correlation towards allergies to: almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, pecans, pistachios, pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds.
Peanuts in the diet
In Italy, peanut allergy does not create significant nutritional discomfort to people who suffer from it because the Mediterranean diet does NOT provide it in any form and at any time during the year; however, overseas (USA), they are such a widespread food that make their dietary exclusion a highly inquisitive and difficult to preserve behavior over time.
It is true that peanuts provide some essential nutrients such as:? Ac. linoleic fat (omega-6 family, 41% of TOT lipids), magnesium (Mg), phosphorus (P) and niacin (vit. PP); On the other hand, by providing an energy level to say the least high (shorn and / or salted peanuts: 594kcal) that derives 50% from fats, we can say with certainty that the relative consumption portions would be in any case so reduced (a few grams per day) to totally negate the dietary importance in a Mediterranean nutritional regime, which we know to be characterized by 25-30% of lipids compared to the daily TOT energy.
Bibliography:
- Food intolerances and allergies - L. Conti - Giunti Demetra - pag. 74-75
- Health foods: the biochemical basis of proper nutrition - S. Colonna, G. Folco, F. Marangoni - Springer - pag. 72
