Death of a Famous Artist Due to a Biscuit

A British dancer with a severe peanut allergy died in the United States after eating a biscuit that did not list nuts among its ingredients on the packaging. The ballet artist, Orla Paxindale, 25, had purchased the cake from "Stew Leonard's" grocery store in Connecticut earlier this month. She was unaware that the Florentine vanilla biscuit contained peanuts, and there was no mention of nuts among the ingredients listed on the cake package. Paxindale carried an auto-injector for allergy treatment, "EpiPen," and surrounded herself with people who knew how to use it, but it was not enough to combat the severe allergic reaction she experienced after eating the biscuit, according to a statement from her attorney. She passed away from anaphylactic shock on January 11. "Orla was extremely careful about everything she ate, and always meticulously checked the ingredients on all packaging," the statement said.