Word: wooding
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...Robert Wood, chief of the Pediatric Allergy and Immunology department at Johns Hopkins Children's Center, cautions against putting too much stock in such epidemiological studies. "The reality is that the vast majority of kids - 95% plus - have no potential to get peanut allergies no matter what you do," he says, "and there's ½ % to 1% who are going to get it no matter what you do." Although the findings of the U.K.-Israel study are intriguing, he says, they apply to a very small percentage of children, and more research needs to be done to determine the true...
Despite the occasional cases of nut over-precaution, Wood thinks the public generally approaches the allergy risk with common sense. "There are definitely situations where we see a fear of the allergy that develops far out of proportion to the true risk, but for the vast majority of schools, things are mostly on balance and in perspective," says Wood, who treats some 2,000 allergy patients. Further, he says, it's important to recognize that the appropriate protective measure depends on the age group in question. "We recommend very different approaches between an early preschooler and a late-elementary schooler...
Still, on blogs run by moms of children with nut allergies, there is a consistent rallying cry for nut-free zones. The concern is airborne nut dust, which can be inhaled, or oily nut residues that can come into contact with children's skin. Wood, who has been allergic to nuts all his life, says these parents' worries may be exaggerated. The danger may depend on the severity of the allergy, but it has much more to do with the degree of contact, he says. "Nut oils or the kinds of things that might be in a classroom...
...dust in the air, Wood says it can cause severe reactions - but only under specific circumstances, with high concentrations of nut dust in a confined space. At a baseball game, for example, where nut dust is quickly dispersed in the air, the risk of an allergic reaction is low. But if you linger in the small waiting room of a restaurant with a dish of nuts and servers who keep passing through with plates of nuts, your risk of an allergic reaction is higher, he says...
...fallout of Detroit dropping its last game, Wood insists, is that the Lions' players will carry a scar for the rest of their lives. "It's embarrassing to me, my family, the city of Tampa, everyone involved," he says of playing for the '76 Buccaneers. "It's a glum, glum feeling, I mean, just an empty feeling." Last week Wood got a call from his brother, who said he just saw the Bucs named the worst NFL team in history on some television program. (Thanks, bro.) "How do you think that made me feel?" Wood asks. "It's hard...