Cross Contamination: What Does that Mean?

Cross contamination is risky business for anyone with food allergies. It's what makes eating out a frightening proposition for a kid with a nut allergy like my son. But for those who don't live a severe food allergy on a daily basis, it's an often misunderstood issue. I thought some firsthand experiences might clarify what cross contamination means.



On our recent Spring Break trip to Chicago, we stayed with dear friends of the family. My kids call them our Cousin-Friends, we are that close! They take our son's food allergy very seriously. They make special trips to the grocery store to stock up on organic soy milk. They rid their house of peanut and tree nut edibles for the duration of out stay. And on this occasion, as she prepared dinner for all the kids, my friend noticed a stray batch of cookies she had made with peanut butter in them. She very quickly disposed of them. Then proceeded to cut up mangoes especially for Tanner, who loooooves fresh mangoes.



Only after she cut them, she turned to me in horror, "I didn't wash my hands! I touched those cookies!" Oops!



"Yeah, that's cross-contamination" I confirmed. And we offered Tanner a cup of peaches instead.



On another occasion, I had to have lunch on the run and had a chicken salad sandwich in the car that contained pecans. I took a swig from the water bottle that I keep next to my seat. Later that day, I picked Tanner up from school and he begged me for some water. I almost tossed the bottle back to him without thinking. Fortunately, I remembered. Yes, that is cross-contamination too and I explained that to him. He was not happy with me and was not buying that water can have nuts in it. Unfortunately for him, it can!