The nutty professor: surviving college with a peanut allergy

For many young adults, college is the first time they'll live away from home and be fully responsible for themselves and their allergies. To help with the transition, follow these tips for staying healthy at school, even with a life-threatening peanut allergy.

Whether they were for your school nurse to keep on file or to have on hand at summer camp, you have likely prepared an allergy-response plan. Even if your new college doesn't require one, make it a point to prepare a plan before moving to campus. Consult with your physician to ensure it includes information such as medications and doses, then make lots of copies.

Who gets copies of your plan? Lots of people, especially when it comes to dorm life. You may not agree on cleanliness, music, or quiet hours, but you need to be on the same page with your roommates when it comes to handling a peanut reaction. It may seem a little silly, but give a copy of an allergy-response plan to your roommates and show them where you keep medication in the dorm room. You may even want to demonstrate how to administer an epinephrine pen if they haven't encountered it before.

Besides your roommates, make sure to also give copies of your plan to any residence advisers who supervise the dorms.

Before picking up your first tray in the cafeteria, meet with the food service directors. Talk to them about how to verify the ingredients used in each meal and how to swap out an unsafe item for something peanut-free.

Depending on the degree of sensitivity you have to peanuts and the level of allergy-awareness demonstrated at the campus, you may wish to avoid the cafeteria altogether. Explore whether your school offers apartment-style living options where you can prepare meals in the residence, or alternative food plans where you can use the money in your account at commercial restaurants on or near campus that may have better allergy regulation.

For better or worse, drinking is often considered a rite of passage for college students. However, alcohol consumption presents some specific challenges to students with peanut allergies.

First, alcohol increases the rate of food absorption. If you happen to ingest a trigger while drinking, it's likely a reaction will occur faster.

Second, alcohol impairs judgement. This increases the likelihood of accidental peanut consumption while reducing your ability to respond to a reaction. Your capacity to identify a problem, administer medication or call for help may be affected. Luckily, alcohol doesn't affect t he effectiveness of epinephrine.

Yes, it is possible to trigger a reaction by kissing someone who has recently consumed peanuts. Although it may be awkward, it is best to wait several hours and have your partner brush their teeth after eating peanut products before locking jaws.

College is an exciting stage of life, and with a little effort, can be a safe experience, even if you have a severe peanut allergy.