Danger of peanut allergy symptoms from air on planes has been overblown

There isn’t a sturdy proof that individuals with peanut allergy symptoms are liable to a extreme response from others consuming peanuts and the allergens circulating via the air whereas on board a aircraft. Whereas peanuts are technically legumes, it’s thought the findings will even apply to nuts and different meals that individuals are generally allergic to.

Folks with meals allergy symptoms could expertise signs akin to rashes, nausea and breathlessness after being uncovered to allergens via consuming, pores and skin contact or inhalation. In extreme circumstances, this could trigger a life-threatening response known as anaphylaxis, which might result in swelling of the throat, dizziness and extra critical respiration difficulties.

Some airways have banned the sale of nuts on flights and their employees make bulletins asking passengers to not eat them in the event that they know somebody on board has an allergy.

To discover the proof behind the inhalation threat, Paul Turner at Imperial Faculty London and his colleagues centered on peanuts, reviewing the outcomes of 5 research.

One examine regarded for peanut particles in air samples throughout a business flight the place the snack was being served. The researchers discovered none in almost all of the samples they collected. That’s as a result of these plane have filters that take away peanut particles within the air earlier than they unfold via the cabin, says Turner.

The exception was air samples collected instantly round tray tables the place peanuts have been being consumed, however these allergens have been at such low ranges that they’d in all probability be inadequate to trigger an allergic response, says Turner.

4 different research checked out airborne allergen ranges as folks ate or shelled peanuts, both of their houses or a lab. They equally discovered very low ranges of allergens inside about half a metre of somebody shelling or consuming peanuts. At most, this may trigger gentle allergic reactions, akin to watery eyes, says Turner.

However larger ranges of allergens have been discovered on seats, trays and the ground of the primary examine’s plane. Wiping down these surfaces would in all probability take away a lot of the chance, says Turner, whose crew is working with UK airways to make flying safer for folks with allergy symptoms.

The identical outcomes would in all probability apply to different allergens, akin to nuts, seafood and eggs, says Turner.

“This report summarises what has been well established for years, in that peanut is highly unlikely to aerosolise and pose an airborne risk to passengers,” says Matthew Greenhawt on the College of Colorado.