I've been trying to digest the latest buzz in the allergy world—the news that if you're allergic to cashews, you need to be on hyper-alert for pink pepperberries, as well. Since pepper is in, oh, everything, and we already worry about enough already, I really wanted to see how legit this worry was before posting about it here. See, a blog post has been circulating like wildfire across the wilds of the internet, and I always like to know the facts before freaking out completely, but I'm afraid in this case, the facts aren't clear enough for me to not worry a bit.
The short of it is this: Christina, of Christina's Cucina, has a daughter with a tree nut allergy, and Christina posted a story about their experience with pink "peppercorns" (more accurately, pink pepperberries) leading to an allergic reaction. Christina's daughter is (thankfully!) a-ok, but this news strikes terror into the hearts of every tree nut allergic person out there, I'm sure. Christina's daughter has always been very careful to avoid her allergens, and was taken by surprise when she had an anaphylactic reaction to a food that was seemingly harmless. It was discovered that the connection between cashews and these pink pepperberries was to blame.
So, what's the deal? Do we need to completely freak out over what pepper blend we're eating now, or what? First, let's break it down so we know what we're dealing with.
Pink peppercorns aren't really peppercorns at all. They are, in fact, pink pepperberries, and they are commonly found in pepper blends. You know the ones I'm talking about—the pretty reddish pink ones that give colour to mixed peppercorns. They're not exactly toxic to the average person, but they are a part of the cashew family, so there is a chance they can cause reactions in people with cashew allergies. The cashew family also includes mango, pistachio, and poison ivy, by the way. But does this relationship mean you should avoid all those things? Well...no. Not necessarily. But maybe.
Studies have not demonstrated cross-reactivity between mango fruit and cashews (whereas there is more cross-reactivity between pistachios and cashews), so one could infer that there isn't an automatic allergy to pink pepperberries just because one has an allergy to cashews, either. But since allergies are crazy things, it's always better to err on the side of caution.
With some digging, I found that there is one particular kind of pepperberry that can cause allergic reactions. According to You Grow Girl, it's the Brazilian pink pepper tree (Schinus terebinthifolius) and not the Peruvian pink pepper tree (Schinus molle) that causes the problems, so it's important to know which is which, too.
How concerning is this? Well, apparently the reported incidences of reactions to pink pepperberries are rather low. In 2012, there was just one reported case of a cashew-allergic woman who suffered an anaphylactic reaction (but was ok after being given epinephrine) after ingesting them, so at that time the verdict was still out about how large a threat the pink pepperberries are to the tree nut allergic community.
My advice here is simple: don't freak out. But do take precautions. It's worth a trip to your allergist to confirm whether these pink pepperberries are a concern for you (or your child) or not.
I really appreciate Christina sharing her daughter's experience—if it saves one person's life, it's always worth speaking up!
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