Lots of info on the subject...
From the National Institutes of Health (NIH):
-Experts estimate food allergy occurs in 6 to 8 percent of children 4 years of age or under, and in 4 percent of adults. 16,21 Approximately 150 Americans, usually adolescents and young adults, die annually from food-induced anaphylaxis. 16
-Peanut or tree nut allergies affect approximately 0.6 percent and 0.4 percent of Americans, respectively, and cause the most severe food-induced allergic reactions. 18
-Severe allergic reactions caused by foodstuffs have been reported in Sweden since 1993, 60 cases, five of them fatal, occurring during the first 3-year period. More than 70 % of all reactions reported were caused by peanuts, soya beans, nuts or almonds. In only 13% of reported cases were the patients over 17 years of age...with extremely severe reactions including asthma4.
Conclusions: Peanut and/or tree nut allergy affects approximately 1.1% of the general population, or about 3 million Americans, representing a significant health concern. Despite the severity of reactions, about half of the subjects never sought an evaluation by a physician, and only a few had epinephrine available for emergency use.
