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Eating nuts in enclosed spaces

(117 Posts)
ordinarygirl Tue 25-Jun-24 15:31:18

The mother of the girl who died from an allergy to sesame seeds (contained in a bagette) has slammed an advert when it shows somebody eating a a peanut bar on a plane. I fully accept that to have an allergy ( not an intolerance) must be awful. However, is it fair to ban other people from eating nuts whilst on a plane ? For vegans, it is usually an easy option for a snack or meal as caterers don't provide anything for vegans to eat. If travelling from home, then it is easy to take a sandwich but when coming home from a holiday then it is not the case. Hence the purchase of a nut bar. As far as I know there are no restrictions on what people can eat on a plane - I wish there was (when it is smelly meat or eggs). So the questions are - a) should there be a ban on nuts - like smoking? b) The chances of meeting someone with an allergy must be low , so is it fair?

SueEH Fri 28-Jun-24 13:12:25

Selfish comments here. If airlines are informed in advance of a peanut allergy they will not serve anything containing nuts on that flight and will make an announcement before take off asking passengers to refrain from eating nuts. And who here would risk someone’s life after hearing that announcement?

growstuff Fri 28-Jun-24 12:50:55

MissInterpreted

orly

Grandmabatty

So your 'right' to eat nuts means someone's life is at risk? Are you saying that you couldn't find an alternative for the two or three hours in an airplane? Nut allergy is one of the most severe allergies

...but when you take into account all the allergies people may have you could end up starving or, as the earlier poster said, ending up with a low blood sugar which is also very dangerous for people with Type 1 diabetes.

No-one is going to starve on a flight - even a long haul one. There are plenty of alternatives to eating nuts, especially for diabetics.

I agree. I Googled "no nut snacks for vegans" and came up with hundreds of results.

growstuff Fri 28-Jun-24 12:50:03

SparklyGrandma

I think nuts should not be sold nor eaten on a flight. I am vegetarian and diabetic, so use nuts at home when having or near a hypo.
After being on a long train journey with no food nor snacks offered, I now always buy food before boarding a plane or train. I will bear in mind what I have read here and never buy nuts to take on an enclosed space journey.

OP - thank you for educating me!

The advice for a diabetic having a hypo is to have a fast-acting carb, such as sweets or full sugar fizzy drink, followed by a starchy carb. Nuts are very low carb, so don't help with hypos. Boiled sweets or dried fruit and a no-nut muesli bar would be better than nuts.

MissInterpreted Fri 28-Jun-24 12:38:29

orly

Grandmabatty

So your 'right' to eat nuts means someone's life is at risk? Are you saying that you couldn't find an alternative for the two or three hours in an airplane? Nut allergy is one of the most severe allergies

...but when you take into account all the allergies people may have you could end up starving or, as the earlier poster said, ending up with a low blood sugar which is also very dangerous for people with Type 1 diabetes.

No-one is going to starve on a flight - even a long haul one. There are plenty of alternatives to eating nuts, especially for diabetics.

SparklyGrandma Fri 28-Jun-24 12:36:45

I think nuts should not be sold nor eaten on a flight. I am vegetarian and diabetic, so use nuts at home when having or near a hypo.
After being on a long train journey with no food nor snacks offered, I now always buy food before boarding a plane or train. I will bear in mind what I have read here and never buy nuts to take on an enclosed space journey.

OP - thank you for educating me!

growstuff Fri 28-Jun-24 12:35:28

orly

Grandmabatty

So your 'right' to eat nuts means someone's life is at risk? Are you saying that you couldn't find an alternative for the two or three hours in an airplane? Nut allergy is one of the most severe allergies

...but when you take into account all the allergies people may have you could end up starving or, as the earlier poster said, ending up with a low blood sugar which is also very dangerous for people with Type 1 diabetes.

Nuts aren't helpful for T1 diabetics experiencing a hypo.

Callistemon213 Fri 28-Jun-24 12:27:47

devongranny

I have a severe nut allergy and it is not the enclosed space in the aircraft but that the air is recirculating and as the cabin crew explained to me if someone eats nuts at front of plane it can be recirculating in the air and so still kill you.

Yes, this.

deanswaydolly Fri 28-Jun-24 12:25:34

Wow! My granddaughter has a severe allergy. She is 17 and has been hospitalised and nearly lost her life. We carry epipens and cards for staff in restaurants etc..Also we always inform airlines when booking, when checking in and when boarding. Its not her fault. People are so very entitled and SELFISH these days if they cannot refrain from eating something for a few hours that would KILL someone else. Sorry I find this post abominable.

Maremia Fri 28-Jun-24 12:22:48

Correct me if I am wrong , but are VEGANS not in favour of saving lives?

DamaskRose Fri 28-Jun-24 12:18:47

But surely there are suitable snacks which do not contain nuts?

devongranny Fri 28-Jun-24 12:18:05

I have a severe nut allergy and it is not the enclosed space in the aircraft but that the air is recirculating and as the cabin crew explained to me if someone eats nuts at front of plane it can be recirculating in the air and so still kill you.

orly Fri 28-Jun-24 12:14:13

Grandmabatty

So your 'right' to eat nuts means someone's life is at risk? Are you saying that you couldn't find an alternative for the two or three hours in an airplane? Nut allergy is one of the most severe allergies

...but when you take into account all the allergies people may have you could end up starving or, as the earlier poster said, ending up with a low blood sugar which is also very dangerous for people with Type 1 diabetes.

MissInterpreted Fri 28-Jun-24 12:09:20

Milest0ne

Visgir1

Having just done a long haul flight, home this weekend you get snacks but not Nuts, this has been like this for several years now.
The food they serve is also Nut free.

I have an allergy to Avocado's, it's in everything!

Have you ever tried buying a sandwich without Mayo? I have an egg intolerance.

I've seen lots of sandwiches advertised without mayo.

sweetcakes Fri 28-Jun-24 11:56:37

maddyone.
I think pretzels are a very good alternative I wouldn't mind at all.
But meddijess really how selfish can you be!

Babsbada Fri 28-Jun-24 11:50:27

Of course it's fair for all the above reasons. It's totally obvious. Who can't live without a packet.of nuts for a few hours? Ridiculous.

Milest0ne Fri 28-Jun-24 11:49:37

Visgir1

Having just done a long haul flight, home this weekend you get snacks but not Nuts, this has been like this for several years now.
The food they serve is also Nut free.

I have an allergy to Avocado's, it's in everything!

Have you ever tried buying a sandwich without Mayo? I have an egg intolerance.

Callistemon213 Fri 28-Jun-24 11:45:19

meddijess

We usually fly long-haul, so asking us not to eat nuts (if they are provided by the airline) is just not on. Why should the majority be deprived of a treat by a tiny, tiny minority. If a person's nut allergy is that life-threatening, then should they be flying?

Oh, can't you do without nuts for the length of a long-haul flight?

meddijess Fri 28-Jun-24 11:43:03

We usually fly long-haul, so asking us not to eat nuts (if they are provided by the airline) is just not on. Why should the majority be deprived of a treat by a tiny, tiny minority. If a person's nut allergy is that life-threatening, then should they be flying?

undines Fri 28-Jun-24 11:29:58

I get that it is awful to have such an extreme allergy, but our freedoms seem to be eroded right, left and centre because this person or that person is sensitive to something. I'm not sure how I feel about the particular question, I just know if my child had such an extreme allergy I would not get in a plane or go anywhere where his or her safety could be compromised. I also think we should a) be asking ourselves why these allergies, and intolerances are surfacing, and b) what we can do about them. Apparently it's beneficial to give peanuts to a child at a very young age, to prevent the allergy developing. There must be more that can be discovered, to help.

Callistemon213 Fri 28-Jun-24 11:26:32

A few sweets and a bottle of water should be plenty
Over 14 hours?

I can't last that long. But I can manage without nuts, sesame seeds, anything else that might cause problems to other people.

sandelf Fri 28-Jun-24 11:23:03

A 'peanut' is a legume (member of pea family) not a tree nut at all. So maybe other nuts would be an alternative. Start the journey hydrated and well fed. We have been trained to eat and drink on planes as we are a captive audience to be marketed to. A few sweets and a bottle of water should be plenty. (Oh I am aware I'll annoy some) schoolnutrition.org/sn-magazine/peanut-and-tree-nut-allergies-understanding-the-differences/

OldFrill Thu 27-Jun-24 23:20:51

ordinarygirl

I would also add that if catering for vegans and others was not so dire, then people would not need to take nut bars with them on planes and trains. Nut bars are a replacement for a meal that is not offered to vegans by catering firms . It is not a snack but for a vegan it is nourishment on a long flight.

Vegans with a nut allergy cope without nut bars.

flappergirl Thu 27-Jun-24 21:49:09

I'm perfectly sure vegans (or anyone else for that matter) can find a snack that doesn't contain peanuts. We're talking about a maximum of around 8 hours, not weeks on end. Good grief, we have a greater choice of food stuffs these days than you can shake a stick at. Nobody's going to waste away.

PamelaJ1 Thu 27-Jun-24 17:37:48

Malaysia airline serves nuts. They are delicious but I am always amazed that they still do it. I just presume that no one on board has reported a problem.
I can’t imagine being upset at having to do without.
What’s the matter with people who seem to have such little concern for others? There are so many other food options.

Tenko Thu 27-Jun-24 17:02:15

In many cases of anaphylaxic shock due to a nut allergy, it’s been due to
a nut based product , oil or flour used in the production of the food