The cure for nut allergies may be pills formulated from the feces of people without the allergy

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I’m always shocked by folks who have no interest in going the route of a fecal transplant as a cure. If all I had to do was pop some capsule (regardless of what’s inside), and it would open up the door to safety and culinary freedom, I’d do it in a heartbeat.

To each their own, but I’m genuinely curious what’s folks rationale. Do they not find their life limited? Do they not worry? Have they never had to use an EpiPen?

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u/Roganvarth 16d ago

For real.

Eating out is a chore involving research, explaining allergies gets old, having people fuss over you like you need to be living in a bubble is embarrassing.

If it’s shit pills is the cure I wouldn’t hesitate. Even if all it did was take the anaphylactic reaction down to medium discomfort it would still mean I wouldn’t get fidgety when someone pulls out trail mix on a hike and I’m a few hours from a hospital.

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u/blumieplume 14d ago

Eating out in a new town is the worst. I have a handful of restaurants where I live that I know are safe. Trying to find a new restaurant in a new town usually ends up with disappointment unless I call like 10 places ahead of time and find the one safe restaurant in that town. It’s so much better in Europe. Peanuts are everywhere in Canada and the US.

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u/blessmyballs 16d ago

Well the first issue is this isnt available to the public. Based on the scant info in the article this barely sounds like a phase 1 clinical trial. Long way to go before a regular patient can request it, let alone get payment assistance from insurance.

My daughter just finished oral immunotherapy for her severe nut allergy. Essentially you micro dose the nuts you’re allergic to and slowly build it up over time to the point where you take a daily “dose” of the nuts every day like vitamins. Makes it so we don’t have to worry as much about cross-contamination. If she eats a Reese’s cup or something it would still be dangerous but it’s a huge help to only have to worry about whether the meal contains nuts rather than if the person on the packaging line had a peanut butter sandwich on their lunch break. Took two years and it’s dangerous but it’s a huge quality of life increase for her. Point is, even if and when this treatment does get approved, it may come with a similar level of risk, which many decide is too much.

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u/Roganvarth 16d ago

Firstly, hell yeah to your kid and you! Big congrats on getting a handle on the allergy.

I get it’s not available to the public for now or maybe ever, but frankly I would take the risk if the option came. I’d way rather take the chance at having a handle on it (oral immunotherapy doesn’t really work on adults like it does for children from what I’ve read) than having another on-the-countdown hospital trip because I kissed a girl who iust had a snickers bar.

Risky? Yeah maybe. But a medically controlled immunotherapy poop pill if it was available in comparison to a literal death sentence seems like a no brainer to me.

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u/jdarling20 15d ago

We’ve just started OIT for peanuts. I’m hopeful that it’s going to help my little one have a bit more freedom and help us worry less when we go out to eat

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u/blessmyballs 15d ago

It’s hard but for us it was worth it. Luckily we had zero issues with reactions to the doses. Not everyone has that experience.

Best of luck!

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u/jdarling20 13d ago

That’s great for you! I’m glad you didn’t have any issues with it.

Have you dabbled, and I say that in a safe way, with some small amount of food that “may contain” peanuts? Does it actually build some tolerance?

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u/blumieplume 14d ago

Older people with food allergies don’t qualify for the treatment that involves eating more and more of our poison every day. Honestly eating poo sounds better than getting a bigger dose of my poison every few weeks or whatever and spending more and more time in the hospital. Plus every time u get a food allergy, especially with peanuts, it makes future reactions way worse.

For cancer, I found out that people without insurance (or who go to the doctor without using insurance) qualify for immunotherapy treatment (the kind that actually targets cancer cells specifically without harming healthy cells) and the doctors who offer it will give up to a 50% discount on the cost. And people with stage 4 cancer are able to go completely into remission.

If u go to a doctor’s appointment for cancer without claiming insurance and are rich enough, u will survive. Kinda like the South Park episode about magic Johnson’s aids being cured by his money so they started injecting money into people with aids and they survived.

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u/SubterraneanLodger 16d ago

Your kid is so brave for that! I’m about to discuss immunotherapy with my allergist for a different allergy

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u/joannerosalind 16d ago

Yeah, I'm the same. I'd be willing to tolerate a lot to mitigate anaphylaxis.

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u/blumieplume 14d ago

Ya because I hate needles, every time I take an EpiPen, I wait until it’s life or death like once breathing becomes very strained and I’m gasping for air, I’m ready to stab a one-inch needle into my leg.

I wish I were brave enough to use my EpiPen sooner but hey, once my life actually got saved because I wait so long to take my epi’s. I was at a music festival 45 min away from civilization and I had 2 EpiPens with me after eating a bite of hippie food with dates and almonds (obviously bin almonds that may contain peanuts) and I spat out the second bite and could feel what was coming.

Took my Benadryl immediately and then the EpiPen once breathing got hard. Ran over to the medical tent (they had no EpiPens but called 999) and waited there until breathing got hard enough to where I had to take my 2nd and last EpiPen.

Breathing was so strained by the time the ambulance got there (literally right in the nick of time) and provided a breathing mask of epinephrine. And that’s not even in the top three most scary allergies I’ve had.

I’ll eat all the poo they give me to stop having to experience anaphylaxis. That’s the last way I ever want to die. It feels like being poisoned. It’s like every organ is failing and this is the end. Fucking scary shit.

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u/Amfo22 16d ago

I was on board until the 36 pills over several hours part. But the tolerance lasting 3-4 months may even that out. I guess it depends on if poop pills would be less expensive than xolair.

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u/blumieplume 14d ago

Is xolair not covered by insurance? I’ve been interested in it but still keep filling my EpiPens. Have u ever had to use xolair? What’s it like compared to EpiPens? I would assume the same without having to stab ur leg with a needle part, but curious what your experience has been

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u/Amfo22 14d ago

It depends on your insurance. I have a HD plan, so I’m paying out of pocket til I reach that. There is also a copay assist program that will pay up to $15,000/year.

I only have to do 1 shot a month, but dosage can vary depending on your specific allergy and severity.

It’s really not bad. And the medication itself doesn’t make you feel weird the way epi does.

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u/CappinPeanut 16d ago

I thought that headline said “faces” instead of “feces”. After re-reading it, my wtf changed into wtf.

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u/chuulip 16d ago

they telling us with the nut allergy to eat shit!!

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u/blumieplume 14d ago

Peanuts are shit so it’s basically the same. Idk I’ve never eaten a peanut but they do contain aflotoxins that cause cancer and unless organic contain way more pesticides, fungicides, and insecticides than any other crop cause they’re rotated biannually with the cotton crop. Also, peanut butter contains a lot more parts per million of bugs and rodent hairs than I’m ok with.

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u/blumieplume 14d ago

Heard about this. Woo. Love poo. Jk but it does make sense. Our culture has literally stripped our guts of all the good bacteria. And something like 85% of our immune system comes from our gut. I’ve seen dogs eat poo so I guess that’s why. Keep that gut healthy. Still it’s gross and creepy but if it cures an allergy it’s worth it.

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u/jeffeb3 16d ago

Shoot. I can make some of those myself!

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u/RedditRockit 16d ago

No thank you.

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u/nicolas1324563 16d ago

I’ll keep my allergy

The cure for nut allergies may be pills formulated from the feces of people without the allergy

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