LONDON -- The British Army won't take you if you have a nut allergy.

According to the Army's Web site, a nut allergy is one of the medical conditions that make a personal ineligible to join.

UK Defense Minister Bob Ainsworth told the Telegraph that it would be "highly irresponsible" of the Army to take a recruit with a nut allergy because of he possibility of a medical emergency.

Diabetes and transplanted organs are also among the conditions listed on the Army Web site that make someone unfit for service.

Nut allergies are the leading cause of fatal and near-fatal food allergy reactions. According to U.S. and British studies, the number of people with nut allergies has doubled over the last decade.

Last December a Yorkshire boy with a nut allergy was forced to quit school after schoolmates taunted him by calling him "nut boy" and throwing nuts at him, the Daily Mail reported at the time.

The ban on soldiers' nut allergies has been clearly posted on the Army Web site, but apparently some Ministers of Parliament weren't aware. UK Defense Minister Bob Ainsworth was questioned about it by a minister, according to the Telegraph story.