Would you eat a packet of nuts on a plane?

I fly at least 1 return flight a week, do an ultra long haul every 3 months and have done for about 15 years. I’ve just returned from two weeks away again ultra long haul and flew 8 sectors with 5 different airlines across three continents. I have never heard an announcement on a plane about not eating nuts.

Pretzels and crackers could have a massive effect on anyone with coeliac disease or an allergy to wheat though.

I was on a plane recently where as we boarded the flight there was an announcement saying please do not open any nuts on this flight as there is a passenger with a severe allergy. Fine. On other flights I’ve been served nuts as a snack with a drink, so I’d assume that anyone with an allergy would make it known to the airline, and if there isn’t an announcement it’s fine to eat nuts.

We were served warmed nuts with a glass of champagne on boarding on our flight last week. If the crew are serving them, I assume there is no problem. No announcement was made about passengers with nut allergies.

But if someone has an allergic reaction in a bakery it’s easier to get them in an ambulance.

I don't but then I don't eat nuts often anyway. There are other chocolates I prefer to peanut M&Ms. On out last flight back from Morocco there was an announcement about a person with a nut allergy on board and no nut containing products were sold on the flight.

Yes. There is no evidence that a nut allergy can be airborne.

I fly recently and there was an announcement saying a passenger had a severe nut allergy so please don’t eat any onboard. That is the only time I have heard it so on a normal flight yes I would eat nuts, on that one, I didn’t open my Graze bar that contained nuts.

But surely a nut allergy is vanishingly unlikely to be triggered by a nearby packet of nuts? Isn’t ingestion or skin contact required? Or exposure to nuts being roasted or ground or similar?

I don’t fly for this reason. I have multiple severe allergies and I react to airborne particles I just can’t risk it. I can’t imagine how terrifying it would be to have a reaction on a flight it’s bad enough on the ground .

Nuts are widely served on planes around the world, and indeed some warm nuts and a glass of champagne are one of the things that make the tedium of flying slightly more bearable. If there was a real issue with nut allergies and flying then medical emergencies would be common and planes would frequently be diverted.

They aren’t, and they are not, so I can only surmise this is another one of those areas in life where mumsnet overstates the risk. Diversions are massively expensive and massively disruptive to airline schedules, so if there was data to suggest that serving nuts negatively impacted customer safety and flight operations they wouldn’t be so widely served.

No, I wouldn't now - it wouldn't have occurred to me not to years ago but one of DS's close friends has a peanut allergy so we're much more aware of this than we used to be.

I fly very regularly and I have never been on a flight with an announcement about someone with a nut allergy. If you have a severe nut allergy, surely it is your responsibility to inform the airline who can in turn, inform other passengers?

I fly a lot unfortunately and have done for 20 years, maybe 30 flights a year or more. i think there's been an announcement about nut allergies maybe twice in my entire flying history and I haven't heard one in years.
Of course I'd respect an announcement if there was someone with an allergy but otherwise wouldn't think twice about what I'd brought on to the plane (unless smelly/messy - that would be the only consideration)

Just wanted to also comment about people saying that people dont tend to leave cheesy fingerprints everywhere, they seem to assume that people eat cheese or dairy products in things, but I usually have a couple of babybels in my handbag or cheddar sticks as snacks, without meaning to, I do leave cheesy residue Im sure.

There are other foods which could cause a similar reaction to nuts, but I suspect not many of us would think about them, ie shellfish, kiwi - obviously others. If your high risk, then the airline would surely make an announcement if they wanted people to refrain from a particular food.

Soupy, you’re 100% right. There is also no evidence of nut allergens being able to be spread via the airplane air system.

As mentioned before nut allergies are not the main cause of allergy death in the UK - it's milk.

Why are you not suggesting we all avoid milk and milk products in public at all times?

Is it because it's completely ridiculous and not feasible?

Allergy sufferers need to manage their own conditions, as do their parents/guardians. They need to make sure they carry allergy medications and inform anywhere they eat that they have an issue.

It is unreasonable to expect the whole world to stop eating major food groups because of individuals.

But there are so many potential allergies OP
and so many things contain nuts.

we had some biscuits for our last flight and there was a nut allergy - DH had already started eating them before it occurred to me I should check and yes the chocolate spread in the middle was hazelnut. So we then put them back in the bag!

it has to be on the person with the allergy and so many other things do as well - I remember being on a flight where someone was allergic to apples so no apple juice

if an announcement is made yes you shouldn’t eat nuts and should check

if not go why can’t they eat them?

and yes I have someone with a nut allergy as a friend and they had an allergic reaction to his sister eating shortbread as made in the same factory

Im very well travelled and well read and what I said is true.

You are being ridiculous. If you or your son had an allergy it would be 100% your responsibility to manage it, that means you would ask the person next to you not to eat nuts.

Yes, me too. A couple of months ago when flying premium economy (sadly doesn't happen in regular economy). Also been served nuts though in packet in economy at different times.

Why would they hand out nuts on planes if they dont want you to eat them?

No but nuts make me cough so I don't eat them anyway.

I don’t agree. And saying that with a kid who has allergies and I myself have an allergy (tongue and throat swells). I wouldn’t expect ppl not to ever eat them on a plane.
im wondering if all the people here outraged are even the ones with allergies, or have family with allergies. The people who are outraged are always those who aren’t connected to the issue.