Peanut Allergies

I was packing lunches and snacks today (actually Craig was doing the snacks) and we were wondering why peanut allergies have become such the norm in the US and they are not even an issue over here. Granted, the peanut is not grown over here and Brits really do not eat peanut butter, but there are peanuts galore in nut mixes and restaurant dishes. The schools have never sent home notices banning peanut products. It got me wondering about if it is actually a peanut allergy or the way peanuts are processed in the US or grown - fertilizer, chemicals. I need to research this.

Oh, an aside - I was searching through "peanut" photos and was amazed at the number of pictures of cats and dogs that popped up in my search. There were way more pets than actual peanuts!