Josh, Anna, and the M&Ms: Part 17

[Knight of Ni]

@singsingsing how serious is your nut allergy? I’m asking because I brought brownies to work one day I brought brownies to work to share. One woman is severely allergic to nuts (not sure what kind). There were no nuts in the brownies and when she asked I said no. So she ate one. But then I had a moment of panic where I thought can’t be 100% sure that there wasn’t a small bit of contamination. I have nuts in the house and often use it for baking. Was there some residue on a baking or storage surface? Did I eat nuts before I baked and have them on my hands? Oh no did I just really hurt my coworker. Everything turned out fine but I did have a moment of worry. 

[singsingsing]

31 minutes ago, Knight of Ni said:

@singsingsing how serious is your nut allergy? I’m asking because I brought brownies to work one day I brought brownies to work to share. One woman is severely allergic to nuts (not sure what kind). There were no nuts in the brownies and when she asked I said no. So she ate one. But then I had a moment of panic where I thought can’t be 100% sure that there wasn’t a small bit of contamination. I have nuts in the house and often use it for baking. Was there some residue on a baking or storage surface? Did I eat nuts before I baked and have them on my hands? Oh no did I just really hurt my coworker. Everything turned out fine but I did have a moment of worry. 

I actually don't know for sure, because I've been very fortunate to only have a single reaction (your first reaction can be super mild and then subsequent reactions can be much more severe). I suspect that I have a mild allergy because I used to be very very indiscriminate about what I ate and never had a problem. I'm also only allergic to two kinds of nuts, cashews and pistachios, which are far less common than others (although cashews are becoming more and more pervasive, to my chagrin, haha).

Now some people do have very serious nut allergies where even a tiny bit of residue can send them into anaphylaxis. In your case, I would say yes, there was some risk due to cross contamination. However, it's your co-worker's responsibility to manage her allergy. She asked you if the brownies contained nuts and you said no, which was the truth. I personally err on the side of extreme caution and never eat any baked goods unless I know for sure what's in them and how they were prepared. In the future if you want to say something like, "These have no nuts in them but I do often use nuts in my baking and I can't rule out the possibility of cross-contamination" I think that's reasonable. But I don't think you did anything wrong at all. It's up to her whether she's comfortable taking the risk!

Edit: What I was really talking about in my last post was when people just outright lie or omit things when specifically asked what's in something because they're either lazy or don't think allergies/medical restrictions are serious. I have honest to God heard of people trying trick other people into eating things they're allergic to because they think it would be funny or they want to prove their allergy isn't real. In another case, my aunt knows I don't eat cheese. I asked her if there was cheese on a salad she brought, and she straight out told me no, no cheese. She even repeated it. Eventually I looked at the salad and said, "Are you sure, because that really looks like cheese?" "Oh, well it's just some feta cheese!" Thankfully I'm not allergic, but wtf, you know?

[MargaretElliott]

I'd never "trick" anyone into eating something they were allergic to/weren't comfortable with (nuts, gluten, vegan, etc) but I do like "tricking" people into eating things they wouldn't normally think they'd like, if I know for a fact it complies with their dietary restrictions. My family is notoriously rigid when it comes to family recipes, and whenever I suggested adding more garlic to my grandmother's bolognese sauce (not Italian bolognese, American 1950s bolognese), everyone just wrinkled their nose and said, "That's not how Grandma made it, so I won't eat it." Until I did add more garlic. Quadrupled it, actually, plus using fresh tomatoes, plenty of fresh herbs, and red pepper flakes. I served it at a family gathering under the false pretense that it was my grandmother's unaltered recipe. And... they freaking loved it. My mother, who "hates garlic" couldn't stop raving about it. But I knew for a fact that everyone who was eating that sauce was okay with all the ingredients involved, I just changed the proportions and added the fresh versions. So that was a successful con on my part.

I'd definitely try breast milk cheese, but it's my goal to try as many weird things as possible. Mouse is pretty good. Guinea pig it disgusting. And smoked watermelon... it has the look and texture of meat, but it's watermelon. Completely freaky. And not all that tasty, but it's got novelty, for sure.

[Daisy0322]

As far as the correlation with what you eat pregnant and whole nursing versus what the baby likes goes, i do think it's interesting to talk about and they did tell me about it in my breastfeeding class but I'm not sure I buy it. I will say I use to love chicken however while pregnant it made me violently ill at just the smell of it and a year later I still don't care for it - it's the only thing my son won't touch it and gags if I try to give him chicken in any form. He loves green olives, tuna, spicy food, tofu, pickles and lots of other weird things for a toddler though. I find it interesting but correlation does not equal causation in my opinion 

[Iamtheway]

4 hours ago, singsingsing said:

I'm also only allergic to two kinds of nuts, cashews and pistachios, which are far less common than others (although cashews are becoming more and more pervasive, to my chagrin, haha).

The cashew nut is actually a seed. I have recently discovered that I can eat it and that I LOVE it. I can also eat peanuts, that are actually legumes. Am allergic to nut nuts though, like walnut and hazel. Am only mildly allergic but I try to stay far away from nuts anyway because I don’t want to trigger anything. 

I just googled and found a list of nuts that aren’t nuts. Turns out that pistachios are also seeds, from the same family as the cashews, and walnuts are also seeds. So time to see if I can eat them too then. A whole new world is opening up! ?

[singsingsing]

50 minutes ago, Iamtheway said:

The cashew nut is actually a seed. I have recently discovered that I can eat it and that I LOVE it. I can also eat peanuts, that are actually legumes. Am allergic to nut nuts though, like walnut and hazel. Am only mildly allergic but I try to stay far away from nuts anyway because I don’t want to trigger anything. 

I just googled and found a list of nuts that aren’t nuts. Turns out that pistachios are also seeds, from the same family as the cashews, and walnuts are also seeds. So time to see if I can eat them too then. A whole new world is opening up! ?

It's weird, there are a lot of different classifications of nuts/seeds, like culinary vs. botanical. But when discussing allergies, cashews and pistachios are classified as tree nuts, as are almonds, walnuts, pecans, pine nuts, chestnuts, hazelnuts, etc. You can be allergic to one or some or all of them. Whereas peanuts, despite the 'nut' in the name, are most definitely legumes and never classified as a tree nut. This leads to all sorts of shenanigans, like people assuming you're talking about peanuts when you say you have a tree nut allergy and so on.

I think I've eaten every type of nut (maybe not brazil?) and the only one I've ever reacted to was cashew. I've never tried a pistachio but if you're allergic to cashews you're basically guaranteed to be allergic to pistachios too. I used to eat almonds every day, never had a problem. Hazelnut I ate fairly regularly, again, no issues. I tested 'sensitive' to walnuts but also never had any issues eating them! I tested 'sensitive' to garlic at the same time and was like, uhhhhh... no. 

[SapphireSlytherin]

1 hour ago, Iamtheway said:

Am allergic to nut nuts though, like walnut and hazel. Am only mildly allergic but I try to stay far away from nuts anyway because I don’t want to trigger anything. 

I just googled and found a list of nuts that aren’t nuts. Turns out that pistachios are also seeds, from the same family as the cashews, and walnuts are also seeds. So time to see if I can eat them too then. 

You've contradicted yourself here. Please be careful when doing food trials!

[Knight of Ni]

Brazil nuts are my favorite but I believe they are also nuts. As for me I tend to think I’m really funny and tell people that I planted a fruit garden instead of a vegetable garden. Everything I plant is technically a fruit but popularly considered vegetables. 

ETA: I tried a smoked potato one time. Tasted like a piece of wood. 

[Sky with diamonds]

My youngest brother is allergic to many nuts. He had a scare last week at his work ( grocery store ) when box of cereal with nuts in it came open while he was handling it. Thank goodness an epi pen was used almost right away, because it could have been bad. 

[singsingsing]

27 minutes ago, Sky with diamonds said:

My youngest brother is allergic to many nuts. He had a scare last week at his work ( grocery store ) when box of cereal with nuts in it came open while he was handling it. Thank goodness an epi pen was used almost right away, because it could have been bad. 

Oh wow, he must have an incredibly severe allergy. Usually just touching/being near nuts won't cause a reaction. Thank goodness for EpiPens indeed.

[Sky with diamonds]

5 hours ago, singsingsing said:

Oh wow, he must have an incredibly severe allergy. Usually just touching/being near nuts won't cause a reaction. Thank goodness for EpiPens indeed.

His reactions can vary depending on the type of nut. Almonds and walnuts are worst, and that is exactly what was in the cereal. Usually at work he doesn't dispose of things, but he was doing it that day. I don't think he will do that particular part of the job again. 

[TeaELSee]

13 hours ago, singsingsing said:

In another case, my aunt knows I don't eat cheese. I asked her if there was cheese on a salad she brought, and she straight out told me no, no cheese. She even repeated it. Eventually I looked at the salad and said, "Are you sure, because that really looks like cheese?"

I’m curious, do you not eat cheese because you dislike it, or is it for health reasons?  I am only asking because I hate cheese (other than melted mozzarella) with every fiber in my being and I lost count how many times people have tried to trick me into eating it.   It is an uncommon dislike and a lot of people don’t seem to grasp it is possible! 

 

[DMouse007]

41 minutes ago, TeaELSee said:

I’m curious, do you not eat cheese because you dislike it, or is it for health reasons?  I am only asking because I hate cheese (other than melted mozzarella) with every fiber in my being and I lost count how many times people have tried to trick me into eating it.   It is an uncommon dislike and a lot of people don’t seem to grasp it is possible! 

 

I hate cheese with the fire of 1000 suns, but can stomach a little melted mozzarella on pizza.  Cheese just tastes like off milk to me.

[singsingsing]

6 hours ago, TeaELSee said:

I’m curious, do you not eat cheese because you dislike it, or is it for health reasons?  I am only asking because I hate cheese (other than melted mozzarella) with every fiber in my being and I lost count how many times people have tried to trick me into eating it.   It is an uncommon dislike and a lot of people don’t seem to grasp it is possible! 

OMG! A kindred spirit! Yes, it's a strong aversion for me - it's quite bizarre and I've always had it. Just like you, I can eat melted mozzarella (like on pizza), but that's just about it. My dad is the same way, and my sister used to be but she can eat some other kinds of cheese now. So maybe I could make the aversion milder if I really worked at it, but I actually do avoid cheese for health reasons nowadays so it's a moot point!

[ItsaJjungle]

15 hours ago, singsingsing said:

 

I think I've eaten every type of nut (maybe not brazil?) and the only one I've ever reacted to was cashew. I've never tried a pistachio but if you're allergic to cashews you're basically guaranteed to be allergic to pistachios too. 

My 4yo is quite allergic to cashews (immediate anaphylaxis), and they told us to avoid pistachios for this reason. Surprisingly, the doctor also said she will likely be allergic to mango as well! Same family as the cashews, apparently. Turns out, she likely has a mild allergy to them (she vomits if she eats them). Sadly, her dad is Indian and we eat tons of Indian food. Many dishes contain cashews, mango, or pistachio. Especially desserts. In his regional cuisine ground cashews are common,  but for some reason when we ask at restaurants, the workers just nod and smile and say “no nuts!” We’ve had a few close calls. Now we just stick to the two restaurants that have been really reliable. 

The other issue is that many nuts are cross-contaminated and some nuts are roasted in the oil of other nuts (but not necessarily labeled as such). So we avoid all nuts for this reason. 

I used to think my friends who had kids with allergies were a little over the top. Then I watched my one year old almost die after eating something with cashews, and I irrationally wish I could eradicate cashews from the planet. And it’s my favorite nut! I get violently angry at cashews and scowl in disgust at them when I see them in the supermarket. 

[singsingsing]

9 minutes ago, ItsaJjungle said:

My 4yo is quite allergic to cashews (immediate anaphylaxis), and they told us to avoid pistachios for this reason. Surprisingly, the doctor also said she will likely be allergic to mango as well! Same family as the cashews, apparently. Turns out, she likely has a mild allergy to them (she vomits if she eats them). Sadly, her dad is Indian and we eat tons of Indian food. Many dishes contain cashews, mango, or pistachio. Especially desserts. In his regional cuisine ground cashews are common,  but for some reason when we ask at restaurants, the workers just nod and smile and say “no nuts!” We’ve had a few close calls. Now we just stick to the two restaurants that have been really reliable. 

The other issue is that many nuts are cross-contaminated and some nuts are roasted in the oil of other nuts (but not necessarily labeled as such). So we avoid all nuts for this reason. 

I used to think my friends who had kids with allergies were a little over the top. Then I watched my one year old almost die after eating something with cashews, and I irrationally wish I could eradicate cashews from the planet. And it’s my favorite nut! I get violently angry at cashews and scowl in disgust at them when I see them in the supermarket. 

I've heard the same thing about mango! Personally I've never had a problem, but then again I've never really eaten it? I used to get a mango green iced tea from my favourite cafe almost every day, but it's possible that it wasn't made with real mango, or maybe the part of the fruit they used is less allergenic or something - or maybe I just don't react to it. Allergies are weird!

[TakingBibleClasses]

1 hour ago, singsingsing said:

7 hours ago, TeaELSee said:

I’m curious, do you not eat cheese because you dislike it, or is it for health reasons?  I am only asking because I hate cheese (other than melted mozzarella) with every fiber in my being and I lost count how many times people have tried to trick me into eating it.   It is an uncommon dislike and a lot of people don’t seem to grasp it is possible! 

OMG! A kindred spirit! Yes, it's a strong aversion for me - it's quite bizarre and I've always had it. Just like you, I can eat melted mozzarella (like on pizza), but that's just about it. My dad is the same way, and my sister used to be but she can eat some other kinds of cheese now. So maybe I could make the aversion milder if I really worked at it, but I actually do avoid cheese for health reasons nowadays so it's a moot point!

ME TOO HELLO FELLOW CHEESE HATERS.

It's been a thing since childhood. I just can't do it. And, yep, people are constantly trying to trick me into eating it. (Like, why? It's not like I'm missing out on some major nutrient that only cheese provides?)

[Rachel333]

My dad is allergic to both pistachios and mango. It's apparently very common to be allergic to both. He has no problem with cashews, though.

I think he's the only one in my immediate family with any food allergies. Once in a great while I do have some issues with my throat swelling a little and hurting after eating something, but I've never figured out what exactly causes it and I haven't experienced it at all in a long time.

[QuiverFullofBooks]

1 hour ago, ItsaJjungle said:

My 4yo is quite allergic to cashews (immediate anaphylaxis), and they told us to avoid pistachios for this reason. Surprisingly, the doctor also said she will likely be allergic to mango as well! Same family as the cashews, apparently. Turns out, she likely has a mild allergy to them (she vomits if she eats them). Sadly, her dad is Indian and we eat tons of Indian food. Many dishes contain cashews, mango, or pistachio. Especially desserts. In his regional cuisine ground cashews are common,  but for some reason when we ask at restaurants, the workers just nod and smile and say “no nuts!” We’ve had a few close calls. Now we just stick to the two restaurants that have been really reliable. 

The other issue is that many nuts are cross-contaminated and some nuts are roasted in the oil of other nuts (but not necessarily labeled as such). So we avoid all nuts for this reason. 

I used to think my friends who had kids with allergies were a little over the top. Then I watched my one year old almost die after eating something with cashews, and I irrationally wish I could eradicate cashews from the planet. And it’s my favorite nut! I get violently angry at cashews and scowl in disgust at them when I see them in the supermarket. 

My grandmother’s allergist told her about someone who was highly allergic to cashews who had an allergic reaction to chicken because the chicken had eaten feed that contained ground-up cashew shells.

[singsingsing]

Moral of the story: if you're allergic to anything, never eat. Never go anywhere. Do not breathe. 

(I am prone to severe anxiety and it hit hard when I found out I had a nut allergy - I was INSANELY paranoid for a long time, and I still have pretty bad anxiety about it. Humour helps.)

[TheOneAndOnly]

Okay I'll admit a tiny bit of food trickery. An ex's mother was extremely vocal about how much better expensive name brands of food were. No generic, cheaper brand, or store brand would EVER be as good. She was not loyal to a specific brand of anything, it just had to be the most expensive national brand of whatever food was being discussed. She was broke to the point of missing utility payments several times a year, but give her the $8 pack of hot dog buns! It was absurd. Every time I was in charge of any food prep I used the cheapest stuff that was still decent quality and hid the containers. She never noticed, and believe me if she had noticed she would not have been polite about it. ?

[beepy13]

I LOVE CHEESE. That is all.

[Carm_88]

Now I want pizza! Meat lovers, stuffed crust, and on the side garlic fingers with bacon. Please and thanks. 

[coexist]

On 8/25/2018 at 5:24 PM, SilverBeach said:

There should be Black, Asian, Native American, and Hispanic Gerber babies too. The cutest babies are not all white.

I'm a few pages behind so I'm not sure if anyone else has mentioned the 2017 Gerber baby, Riley. Not sure how his father identifies, but it seems to me that Riley is bi- or multi-racial:

[AliceInFundyland]

I visited the Gerber site after that little aside and found the 2018 baby, who has Downs. Could be that they are making some moves to diversify, although they definitely like the iconic logo baby. There’s a whole feature on how that sketch was chosen.