Tag Archives: nut

Woman with nut allergy has severe reaction after sex with man who ate nuts

Posted on by
2

In a new meaning for ‘peanut,’ a U.K. woman has, according to this story, which really needs to be verified, become the first person to suffer an allergic reaction to nuts triggered through having sex.

The boyfriend of the 20-year-old, who has not been named, had eaten a handful of Brazil nuts just before the couple’s passion took hold.

Having recently found out she was seriously allergic to the food, she asked him to take extreme precautions.

The man brushed his teeth, rinsed his mouth out, washed his hands and scrubbed under his fingernails, according to science-technology website io9.

But what happened next has alerted scientists to the fact that the nut proteins can get into the seminal fluid.

After the pair had sex, the lower part of the woman’s body swelled up and she became short of breath.

Doctors at St Helier hospital in Carshalton, Surrey assumed it was a severe allergic reaction to nuts, from kissing or skin-to-skin contact.

But after the pair explained their precautions, researchers doubted that the nut proteins ended up in sweat or saliva, because the allergic reaction would have started earlier, and would have been triggered in other couples.

It is the first recorded case of an allergic reaction to Brazil nuts through intercourse.

To be absolutely certain, doctors brought the man back in and took two semen samples – one before, and one four hours after eating Brazil nuts.

They then performed a test on the girl, where they give a small injection with a needle covered in semen underneath the skin.

This is a common way to test for particular allergies.

It appears that Brazil nut proteins resist digestion, which is why they generally end up in the immune system, triggering immune reactions.

They discovered the woman’s skin swelled up and his semen caused a reaction just three to four hours after eating the nuts.

But because the couple split up after the reaction, scientists were not able to carry out further tests.

Caterpillar wriggling in NZ nut bar hard to stomach

Posted on by
Reply

When Atul Awasthi bit into his muesli bar during his lunch break the last thing he was expecting was a caterpillar crawling out.

The Auckland scientist was on a lunch break from an animal pharmaceuticals company in East Tamaki when the caterpillar wriggled out between the chocolate-coated nuts on his Tasti nut bar.

The New Zealand Herald reports that Mr Awasthi immediately went to the toilet to throw up. "I was horrified."

Experts say the moths, which are commonly found in household pantries, are almost impossible to avoid and are not harmful to humans.

But Mr Awasthi feels that Tasti, which apologised and sent him vouchers for two free packets of the muesli bars, were "blase", and did not take his complaint seriously enough.

Tasti, a Te Atatu-based company which produces muesli bars and cereals, said it had done everything in its power to prevent the Indian meal moth from getting into stock. Marketing director Adrian Cook said the "nasty little creature" was a known worldwide problem.

Peanut-man Parnell back to work as nut consult

Posted on by
2

Associated Press reports that Stewart Parnell, former president of the now-bankrupt Peanut Corp. of America whose filthy processing plants were blamed in a salmonella outbreak two years ago that killed nine people and sickened hundreds, is back in the business.

Parnell is working as a consultant to peanut companies as the federal government’s criminal investigation against him has languished for more than 18 months, The Associated Press has learned.

Parnell, who invoked the Fifth Amendment to avoid testifying before Congress in February 2009, once directed employees to "turn them loose" after samples of peanuts had tested positive for salmonella and then were cleared in a second test, according to e-mails uncovered at the time by congressional investigators.

In an interview with the AP, Parnell expressed exasperation and said he wants the pending criminal investigation resolved — one way or another.

"They just say we’re still investigating," Parnell said. "I feel like I wish they’d come on and do what they’re going to do. I’d like to get this behind me."

Parnell also said he has been directed by his lawyers not to discuss his case with family members of the nine people who died in the salmonella outbreak blamed on his processed peanuts.

"My God, when are we going to hold anyone responsible?" said Jeff Almer, whose mother, Shirley Almer, was the first known death from the outbreak in Minnesota. "So far to this day, nothing’s happened to this man. I think every person in America who was affected by this, every family who lost someone, deserves to hear the truth from this guy."