Does nut allergy = nut wood allergy?

[Alex Franke]

My little girl was recently diagnosed with a tree nut allergy -- specifically walnuts and pecans.

Does that mean she's also allergic to walnut wood or wood dust?

We'll probably ask the doctor just to be sure, but I thought one of you might know off hand. I'll hold off on making my next walnut/maple chess board just in case!

[billwmeyer]

Alex,
That is a great question! I have a grandson that is alergic to nuts, soy, milk, eggs, etc. He has overcome most of it, but it never occurred to me about walnut sawdust.

Bill

[cgallery]

This is an excellent question. It will be interesting to hear comments from the doctors.

The problem w/ allergies is that everything can be okay, until it isn't. It can go from "not bad" to "life threatening" in minutes.

I'd worry that you could make five projects w/ walnut w/ no ill effect, only to find that machining the parts for the sixth project sends her into anaphylactic shock.

*Did you know that google's spell checker doesn't recognize "anaphylactic?" Huh. I'm a better speller than google.

[leehljp]

I am not a doctor but I will say (in my opinion) that it is not necessarily so . . it is dependent upon each individual. Also, plants themselves will often/usually have different allergens than their fruits.


Getting outside of "plants" I developed a very severe allergy to CA glue (Superglue) used to finish pens. Some people are allergic to the fumes and I have watched them write statements that it is the "fumes" and not the CA dust. CA dust from sanding does not bother them. Me - CA fumes and CA sanding dust - either or both will trigger an onset 4 to 6 hours later - sneezing and then severe running nose and then 2 to 3 days of flu like symptoms with severe chest congestion. (I now use a DC and dual canister face mask.)

The point is - Is it this . . . or that . . . or both? The answer is yes and no! Tree pollen will trigger allergies that working with the wood and saw dust itself will not trigger.

I would be glad to see what the Docs have to say!

[Alex Franke]

Hm... Tung oil might also be a concern...

[windmill]

I am not allergic to walnuts (or any nuts for that matter), but I am mildly allergic to walnut dust (sore throat, mild rash etc.). So, one does not necessarily imply the other. While it's wise to avoid potential allergens, knowing what to watch out for early is probably more important.

[MilDoc]

Short answer - no. Nuts themselves have a part of the nut that causes allergic reactions. For example, someone with a peanut allergy is unlikely to react to refined peanut oil, as that part of the peanut is removed first. These allergens develop in the nut as it forms.

That does not mean that a nut allergic person could not have an allergic reaction to the wood dust as any of us can. But that is an inhalant allergen, not a consumed food allergy.

Anyone can also have a contact allergy to oily woods and develop a rash. But, again, a whole different type reaction.

[Wood_workur]

I've heard of walnut oil causing problems, and I may have read something about the wood. But unless it is a very severe (as in nuts in the room make her react) I wouldn't worry about it outside a cutting board. I'd avoid the oils for sure though.

[radhak]

We are lucky - no allergies in any of our extended families, at all...

But we had friends with two sons (7 and 10 then) who were severely allergic to Peanuts - the sort that hospitalized one or the other almost every other month (eg, a restaurant used the same containers to prepare food that had earlier held peanut-ingredients, etc), or at least needed their mom to move around with a ready-to-inject syringe of some sort all the time...

Anyway - they found they were also allergic to the touch of peanuts : they developed rashes while visiting friends, and the mom quickly found out that the hosts' kids used to eat peanuts on the sofa they were sitting on, and it retained some peanut dust !

Just an anecdote from personal experience - you could keep it in mind.

[natausch]

Peanut allergies in children make me very sad, because they'll never get to experience Smuckers Natural Creamy Peanut Butter, that stuff is amazing.

Walnuts and Pecan nut allergies seem to focus mostly on the lipids (fat) in them, similar to peanut and pine nut allergies, while the dust and skin contact allergies comes from juglone. This is the substance in the pollen, roots, and leaves that you have to be careful about with horses and plants in the area around it. A full sized Black Walnut tree is a terror to many of plants surrounding it.

If her allergy is confined to her mouth (tingle, soreness, swelling) then she is probably allergic to juglone. If it's respiration related then it is probably the lipids. Chess sets are a challenge, since if she's young enough she could put a playing piece in her mouth.

[eccentrictinkerer]

I'm allergic to walnuts and hazel nuts.

I haven't experienced any problems with machining walnut, mostly 'cuz I can't afford to buy walnut!

[Alex Franke]

Thanks, guys -- we haven't heard yet from her allergist about the tung oil. I don't know if that was one of the nuts they tested on her, but because it's an oil from the actual nut, I think it's probably a greater concern than the walnut wood.

Thanks for your input so far -- I'll keep you posted!