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Peanut Gallery Banned from the Ballpark
by
Josh Katz
Baseball stadiums from Seattle to St. Louis are experimenting with peanut-free seating sections so that fans with deadly peanut allergies can attend games.
30-Second Summary
Although peanuts and Cracker Jack have historically been staples at American baseball games, the Seattle Mariners will have two “peanut controlled” seating sections for its August 5 game against the Minnesota Twins and its September 9 game against the Texas Rangers. Concession stands in the area will not serve peanuts or foods that might have traces of peanuts, and the sections will be meticulously cleaned.
The St. Louis Cardinals and the Minnesota Twins have also attempted to go peanut-free, as have a number of Minor League teams.
“Most people have been pretty good about it,” said Cardinals usher Tom Jackson. “We don’t want to make a big deal out of it. We want these kids to feel normal.”
In America, between 0.5 and 1 percent of the population suffer from peanut allergies. Food allergies account for about 125 deaths a year, and peanut allergies are the cause of most of them.
The allergy usually develops early in childhood, and the reactions can “range from a minor irritation to a life-threatening reaction called anaphylaxis,” according to the Mayo Clinic. Unlike with many other food allergies, “most kids don’t outgrow peanut allergy as they get older.”
Either way, movements to rid a number of public places of peanuts have become more common. But there is debate as to whether the incidence of peanut allergies is on the rise and, if so, what could be causing the trend. Breastfeeding, antireflux medications and diaper creams have all been blamed as potential triggers.
The St. Louis Cardinals and the Minnesota Twins have also attempted to go peanut-free, as have a number of Minor League teams.
“Most people have been pretty good about it,” said Cardinals usher Tom Jackson. “We don’t want to make a big deal out of it. We want these kids to feel normal.”
In America, between 0.5 and 1 percent of the population suffer from peanut allergies. Food allergies account for about 125 deaths a year, and peanut allergies are the cause of most of them.
The allergy usually develops early in childhood, and the reactions can “range from a minor irritation to a life-threatening reaction called anaphylaxis,” according to the Mayo Clinic. Unlike with many other food allergies, “most kids don’t outgrow peanut allergy as they get older.”
Either way, movements to rid a number of public places of peanuts have become more common. But there is debate as to whether the incidence of peanut allergies is on the rise and, if so, what could be causing the trend. Breastfeeding, antireflux medications and diaper creams have all been blamed as potential triggers.
Headline Links: Ballparks go peanut-free
The peanut-free sections at the two upcoming Mariners games “will be cleaned thoroughly before each of the games. Signs will also be posted nearby to alert fans of a ban on all peanut products in those two sections. No peanuts or foods containing peanut products will be sold at nearby concession stands to ensure the safety of those in the section.”
Source: MLB.com
The St. Louis Cardinals unveiled their peanut-free section at the team’s July 21 game. “Two years ago we went to a Triple A game, but we had to move eight or nine times to get away from people eating peanuts,” said the father of eight-year-old Todd Stringer at the game. “We planned a little vacation around this.”
Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch
A CNN video reports on Seattle’s move to make peanut-free zones at the ballpark.
Source: CNN
Background: ‘Peanuts Pose Big Danger To Some’
The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology indicates that peanut allergies affect between 0.5 and 1 percent of all Americans and peanuts account for most allergy deaths a year.
Source: NBC
Opinion & Analysis: Accommodating to those with peanut allergies
The sports blog Big League Stew discusses decisions by the Mariners, Cardinals, Minnesota Twins and some minor league teams to embrace the peanut-free idea. “Though it might seem sacrilegious to some of us shell-cracking folk to not be able to buy peanuts at a baseball game, I don’t have much of a problem abstaining for a game or two a year,” the blogger writes.
Source: Yahoo Sports
In a June 9 Newsweek piece, a mother expressed her concern for her young daughter, recently diagnosed with severe peanut allergies, and what life will be like once she begins school. The mother acknowledged that many parents might “roll their eyes” when asked to accommodate to a child’s allergies, but she implores other parents to realize the seriousness of the condition and that she and her daughter need all the help they can get.
Source: Newsweek
Dr. Darshak Sanghavi, an assistant professor of pediatrics at UMass Medical School, wrote an op-ed that appeared in The Boston Globe in 2006, in which he claimed the rise in peanut allergies is overstated. He also said there is little information to back up studies suggesting that breastfeeding, antireflux medications, “peanut-containing diaper and breast creams, and soy-based formulas” may increase the likelihood of the allergy forming.
Source: The Boston Globe
Reference: ‘Take Me Out to the Ball Game’; peanut allergy information
Baseball Almanac has a short history of “Take Me Out to the Ball Game,” and provides the first and second versions of the lyrics to Jack Norworth’s 1908 song, “which was written on some scrap paper on a train ride to Manhattan.” Both versions include the lyric, “buy me some peanuts and Cracker Jack.”
Source: Baseball Almanac
The Mayo Clinic explains symptoms, causes, risk factors, diagnosis, treatment and prevention for peanut allergies.
Source: Mayo Clinic
FindingDulcinea’s Web Guide to Allergies explains the different kinds of allergies, and how to find treatment and support online.
Source: findingDulcinea
© 2012 Dulcinea Media, Inc.
