This tree nut allergy alert for several other natural products is my second post sharing what I’ve learned from my own daughter’s severe tree nut allergies.
Last year I wrote about my daughter’s strange allergic and anaphylactic reaction after eating at a restaurant at Disneyland.
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We had no idea why she had this reaction as the chef swore that there had been no tree nuts, or any form of cross contamination in her food. Yet clearly, she’d ingested some form of nuts as her airway had started to close, and she was feeling her lips swelling as well as other symptoms.
You will find that post here. However, I can tell you that the offending allergen was the pink peppercorns (which are related to cashews) in a four-blend pepper that the restaurant used. How I discovered this two weeks after the reaction was extremely serendipitous, I’m very thankful to an Amazon reviewer for the information.
Since then, I’ve discovered that there are some other hidden or obscure tree nut allergens. These may cause those with allergies to tree nuts to react, so I want to inform you about those, too.
Tree Nut Allergy Alert
NB: please understand that I am not a doctor or allergist. I am simply passing on what I feel is vital and helpful information. Anyone with a tree nut allergy (or those who have children with allergies) can do their own research on these allergens. Given that my daughter has a severe tree nut allergy, I would very much appreciate anyone putting out such information that may save her from an anaphylactic reaction in future.
Sumac
Sumac seems to have popped up a while ago as a great, new spice that is being used in restaurants and recipes. I even spotted it in my local Trader Joe’s spice shelf. However, this flowering plant is similar to the pink peppercorns. It is also part of the cashew family (Anacardiaceae), as noted in Wikipedia. Luckily, my daughter has not encountered this spice, but now she knows to avoid it. We’d rather be safe than sorry.
Argan (Argan Oil)
This was a complete surprise to me, as I didn’t know the derivation of Argan oil. I had been using it in my hair as a friend gave me some to try. It was also in the hair, skin and nails supplement I had been taking. The shock came when I was reading the label on the bottle and saw this below the ingredients.
“Contains Soy and Tree Nut (Argan) ingredients.”
Of course, I immediately hopped on to google to read more about Argan oil, and told my daughter to avoid it, too. Here is what I read on Wikipedia:
“Argan oil is a plant oil produced from the kernels of the argan tree (Argania spinosa L.) that is endemic to Morocco. In Morocco, argan oil is used to dip bread in at breakfast or to drizzle on couscous or pasta. World-wide, it is gaining a reputation both as an ingredient in high-end, personal-care products and as a heart-healthy gourmet product.[1]“
Who knew? Not me! If you have a tree nut allergy, please take care with argan products.
Shea Butter
Yep, you guessed it, shea butter comes from a nut. Interestingly, my daughter had reactions from a face lotion and a sunscreen that contained shea butter on separate occasions. The strange thing is that she realized she had been using other products with shea butter that has no effect on her skin.
I’ve told her to avoid it, once again, just to be safe. You’ll have to do your own research, but I’d rather put this on the list of things that come from nuts, and which may cause reactions, than to leave it off.
Mango
Believe it or not, mangoes are also related to cashews as they too, are part of the Anacardiaceae family! My daughter has eaten mangoes in the past with no reaction whatsoever. However, in some comments on my last allergy post (or in emails from readers), readers have shared that some people with nut allergies have reacted to mangoes.
Marula
Marula is used to make Amarula liqueur is also in the Anarcardiaceae family (like mangoes and cashews, stated above). Marula oil made from seeds of the marula plant may cause allergic reactions to those with nut allergies.
Once again, I am sharing this information in the hope that spreading the word may save nut allergy sufferers from future reactions. This is especially important as they could be anaphylactic reactions.
Do you know of any other such allergens with cross reactions to those with tree nut allergies? I’d love to hear from you! You may help my daughter with her severe tree nut allergy, and many others!
Please pass on this important information to anyone you know who has a tree nut allergy or knows others who do. I’m sure they will be more than grateful.
Christina’s Cucina is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associate Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.
I was awake all night with stomach pains and gas after eating a Modify Health low FODMAP meal. I suspected that it might have had cotton seed oil, to which I am allergic. This morning I checked the ingredients. No cottonseed oil, although that sometimes sneaks in. sSmac was the only thing I spotted that could have caused the problem. I will now avoid sumac at all costs!
Oh dear! That’s awful, Martha, hope you’ll be okay avoiding sumac now. Glad you found this!
I was just watching a video that mentioned marula oil for skin care. I didn’t know what it was, so I googled it. Turns out that the marula plant has a nut and that nut is used to make oil and it is a potential problem for nut allergy people. It seems there a new nut surfacing every time I turn around!
It’s awful, Tamie. I feel so badly for those of you with allergies; they are NOT taken seriously enough, in my opinion. I know about Marula trees. Just changed my text to make it more obvious about the Marula oil products. Thank you!
I do not have a nut allergy but do have a sensitivity to them. I just had a Hello Fresh meal last night with the Sumac seasoning. This morning was not pleasant so I jumped online and found your article. Thank you for writing this so I know that it is not just me!
You’re welcome, Nicole. Be careful as those sensitivities can become worse. Stay safe!
Thank you so much for doing this! I am 68 and have had a tree nut allergy since I was 5. Each time that I have had a reaction, it has gotten worse. I am now at the point that the reaction comes back after the medicine wears off. The doctors told me a few years ago that this is going to kill me unless I am extremely careful. I carry two Epipens with me just to buy time to get to the hospital. It is difficult to protect against tree nuts in certain products because it is not something that appears would be in it. It takes me hours to grocery shop because I have to read all labels,even for products that have been safe in the past. Someone has the bright idea to change something in the product and the result puts people’s lives in danger.
I am so sorry to hear this, Angela. I have heard that sometimes allergies increase in severity with each exposure/incident. I hope you will live a long life and will stay safe from nuts in all products. I agree with you, I think it’s awful that there isn’t more of an awareness as it’s so prominent an allergy. Best wishes to you.
Regarding sumac, just wanted to let readers know that this is often used in arabic food. The salad called fattoush contains it. Also if you had spinAch/cheese manaeesh (pizza pies) can have it as well.
Thank you for this information!
Thanks for sharing the information about other foods that may affect nut/tree nut allergy sufferers. I just found several good books on Amazon that focus on food allergies. https://www.amazon.com/Food-Allergies-Complete-Depends-Hopkins/dp/1421423383/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1508436142&sr=1-1&keywords=food+allergies+sicherer
This has been very helpful and I would like to know if anyone has good recommendations for hair/skin products that don’t contain nut oils. It seems that they have become very popular ingredients lately. I picked up what I thought was a safe hair product only to find out it also had marula oil in the ingredients on closer inspection. My daughter also has an allergy to Methylisothiazolinone which I had no idea about until her skin started drying out and peeling excessively. She already has excema and I found out the ingredient is used in lots of household and cosmetic items and was in the rug cleaner I had used. It was confirmed by a visit to an allergist.
Thank you for this info. I’m learning daily info like this. Check this craziness out: I’m 50 now but about 10 years ago, we were cleaning up a property that had all 3 of the bad guys – oak, sumac and ivy. LSS – over the course of 3 years, I almost constantly had the rash from 1 or all 3. Besides having an autoimmune disease, I had to deal with these 3. I took so many steroids during the 3 years that I now cannot take that same steroid w/o my face feeling like it’s going to explode. One day out of the blue, I became allergic to fish but NOT shellfish. Crazy right? Maybe a year later, I was now allergic to raw carrots but could eat them cooked – in moderation. Then around a year later, it was cashews. Always a few months after a recent allergen discovery, I would have a new one. Macadamia nuts was next then cantaloupe. Now I even get reactions from the pollen on fruits & vegetables we buy at the store. Washing in vinegar does nothing to help. Before all this started, the only allergies I had were your typical seasonal ones but would be worse at times. I firmly believe that the years long battle I had with the typical 3 plants was the spark causing the new allergens. I don’t remember the exact article, but it was from a reliable source that said fish, carrots, cashews and macadamia nuts were all part of a particular family. I never had to be careful about what I ate or how it was prepared. Definitely makes like much harder than it needs to be.
Oh goodness, that is absolutely awful! I’m so very sorry to hear this and just hope that is the end of new allergies for you. It just proves that allergies can happen to anyone, anytime. I hope you have an Epipen with you at all times? Even if none of them have caused you anaphylaxis, given your history, I think any decent doctor would give you a prescription. Good luck and I truly hope these allergies leave just as they came. Stay safe.