A news item last November read a little like an urban myth ... Christina Desforges, a Canadian with a nut allergy had died after kissing her boyfriend who had eaten peanut butter.
It wasn't refuted at the time, but now the Coroner investigating the case has said Christina's nut allergy was not the cause of death. This will probably be of some consolation to allergists who were a bit non-plussed at the ramifications of this type of allergy-related death.
Surprisingly, the Saguenay Coroner has not yet made a final ruling -just confirmed it wasn't the nut allergy.
According to the BBC report the coroner said he wanted to speak out so the case would not be used in a proposed ad campaign by the Canadian Association of Food Allergies.
Miss Desforges died in hospital in Saguenay, about 155 miles (250km) north of Quebec City, last November, after she failed to respond to days of treatment.
Her 16-year-old boyfriend had kissed her some nine hours after he had eaten peanut butter on toast, the AFP news agency reported at the time.
The coroner Mr Miron said that, contrary to media reports at the time, she did not get an adrenalin shot, a standard treatment for anaphylactic shock, immediately after the kiss. He said she had not used her syringe to give herself a shot because she did not have an allergic reaction to peanut butter.
Symptoms of a peanut allergy can include hives, a drop in blood pressure and swelling of the face and throat that can hinder breathing.
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