12/20/06 Peanut Allergies

If you have an allergy to peanuts especially if you are a child, everyday life can be treacherous to navigate even a benign sleep-over can turn deadly if something containing peanut oil is served without your knowledge. Adults suffer as well, nearly 3 million Americans confess to having an allergy to peanuts and 150 die each year from what is considered to be one of the most severe food allergies. While researchers at the University of Florida's Institute of Food and Ag Sciences have recently discovered a component in the protein of peanuts that could be tweaked to make it non-allergenic, it is just the initial step in a long process projected to take many more years of genetic research. Peanut protein is what triggers allergic responses in those with over sensitive immune systems, so the search is one to create a ultimate peanut without the specific protein trigger. Even with the breakthrough at University of Florida researchers estimate we are looking at 20 years or more before safe peanut exists.