Food allergies: One bite can be deadly

[영어도우미]

Food allergies: One bite can be deadly

http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/conditions/03/26/food.allergies/index.html

 

 

Caryl Schivley says her son, Brenton, was always very careful about what he ate -- until last September 1, when he was at a friend's house and took a cookie from a bowl on the kitchen table.

 

"He took a bite of the cookie and he said to his friend, 'I shouldn't have eaten that,'" said his mother. Severely allergic to peanuts, the 16-year-old from western Massachusetts made the dire mistake of not asking about the ingredients. Within minutes he developed a severe allergic reaction to the cookie, which contained peanuts.

 

Within an hour, he was dead.

 

An estimated 12 million Americans suffer from food allergies, and about 150 die every year. The new study was conducted by researchers at Furlong's organization, National Jewish Medical and Research Center in Denver, Colorado, and Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York.

 

Of those who died after accidentally eating the food to which they were allergic, 58 percent were between the ages of 13 and 30. Of the 31 people the study examined, 68 percent had eaten outside of their home, for example at a restaurant, school cafeteria or the home of friends. More than 80 percent of the deaths were caused by peanuts or tree nuts, such as almonds, cashews and pecans. The study also documented four milk-allergic individuals who died after accidental exposure to a dairy containing product and two who had eaten shrimp.

 

In a food allergy -- unlike intolerance -- the immune system mistakenly identifies a food as being dangerous and reacts acutely against it.

 

 

DISCUSSION POINTS :

 

1. What can you say about the number of deaths related to food allergies in the US?

2. What are some ways to prevent allergic reactions?

3. What are you allergic to?

4. What are some common allergies in Korea?

5. Do you know anyone who has bad allergies? How do they handle it?