Food Allergies in schools? What is your opinion.

[thirty5]

I wanted to see what opinions people have on the subject of having foods banned from schools.

While I know that food allergies can be very dangerous for children and for the most part it is peanut/tree nuts. I would never want to put any child in danger and I am thankful that my children do not have any allergies (that we know of).

My kids school has allergy policies that are in effect. One of my daughters was in a nut free classroom last year and my other daughter is this year.

My kids for the most part eat healthy and hard to find healthy snacks without nuts, but we did last year and we dealt with it.

This year my younger daughter is in the nut free class room. My daughter can LIVE ON peanut butter and she is now not allowed to have it as a snack. My wife and I bit the bullet and said OK we do not want to put another kid in danger, so no peanut butter for snack.

So the first day of school we ask Maddie what she wants for snack and she says Hummus (no nuts). Great we sent it to school and it comes back that day un-opened and she said that the teacher said she was not allowed to eat it. No note from the teacher why she could not eat it.

As we now find out is that now Sesame is banned from her classroom. I think that these rules are going a little overboard.

My biggest problem with this policy is that for lunch there is a peanut/treenut free table in the lunch room. This table is right next to other tables where kids are eating peanut butter and sesame. I even offered to allow the teacher to move my daughters desk across the room.

I think that there needs to be a balance between protecting one child and the rest of the class. I think that the teacher should be responsible for making sure that the one child is kept safe. It is kind of like when one person gets in trouble and everyone gets punished for it.

I am not asking them to say that anything goes, I am simply asking them to revisit the policy to see if in fact there are any changes that they can make to be acceptable by all.

My daughter is singled out because she can have something that someone else cannot. I guess it really set me off when they started to add other items to the list.

Anyone have any thoughts? If anyone has an allergic child in school please chime in, I would like to hear your thoughts if you think that the whole class should be "punished" for one child. Please do not take offense to any of my comments here. I really feel bad for any child that has any illness.....

 

[howze01]

I guess the way I see this is that it's pretty easy to find different snacks and if it could save the life of another child, why not? How old are we talking here? I was a nursery school teacher and we had a kid in our class that just the smell of peanut butter would set him off.

 

[thirty5]

I guess the way I see this is that it's pretty easy to find different snacks and if it could save the life of another child, why not? How old are we talking here? I was a nursery school teacher and we had a kid in our class that just the smell of peanut butter would set him off.

1st grade. I am ok with the peanut thing. That we will deal with. But now the addition of other items is what is bothering me.

Also that kids cannot have it in the classroom where there is more supervision, but in the lunch room they can have them with less supervision.

They need to have the rules make sense all across the board. I know that nut allergies are BAD "sometimes". But as far as I can tell sesame is not bad.

So what happens when a kid can get hives from say strawberries, are they going to then ban them also?

The balance is not there, I guess that is my problem.

 

[saltwaterinbrooklyn]

Its amazing how we grew up without some of the issues we face today , and how the foods that keep us alive can now kill our children, i have 2 kids of my own and i can understand what parents go through but i too have to agree with the fact that maybe it is getting out of hand and if it goes on then what? ...."all kids will be subjected to baby food during school hours! Organic of course!.

 

[mbg75]

My daughter has a peanut allergy..She is a level 4 out of 5, which means she can possibly have a reaction just from it being airborne..

As far as "not that bad", well if exposed to enough, she can die without proper medical attention within minutes...She has multiple Epi-pen's in school, but we have to trust the school with that responsibility and to get an ambulance with Advanced life support there within minutes.

Do we trust the school district with that? Not comfortably...

So if it means no peanuts in school so be it...most parents just don't get how dangerous it is...simply because its not their child affected.



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[jr973]

Man be glad its just that and not lead in the drinkin water like at my brother in laws school he is 10 or 11 and had to get relocated due to findings of lead in the schools drinkin water and I believe asbestos also what a joke these public schools I pay 12k taxes and get that too show for it

 

[Jakef150]

1 out of 12 have a serious allergy

 

[thirty5]

My daughter has a peanut allergy..She is a level 4 out of 5, which means she can possibly have a reaction just from it being airborne..

As far as "not that bad", well if exposed to enough, she can die without proper medical attention within minutes...She has multiple Epi-pen's in school, but we have to trust the school with that responsibility and to get an ambulance with Advanced life support there within minutes.

Do we trust the school district with that? Not comfortably...

So if it means no peanuts in school so be it...most parents just don't get how dangerous it is...simply because its not their child affected.


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I feel for your daughter I really do. I understand that nuts can be very dangerous to some children. While I do not have the problem with banning the nuts, my problem is them banning every little thing. Next it will be fruit that gives kids hives. I was told that student "May be" allergic to sesame.

I'm sorry but if they have not been tested and Dr says they are, they you can't put down such a broad policy.

Especially when lunch time comes around and the ratio from students to adults skyrockets.

 

[saltwaterinbrooklyn]

This is so insane , i never heard of these allergies as a kid in nyc public schools and now its almost like an epidemic . Shcool is just like a day care, they also have seperate refridgerators for these kids.

 

[thirty5]

This is so insane , i never heard of these allergies as a kid in nyc public schools and now its almost like an epidemic . Shcool is just like a day care, they also have seperate refridgerators for these kids.

These allergies are definitely on the rise. I know that there are alleged explanations why. But they should be dealt with the proper way. What it seems now is that they are just trying to push it aside and just ban stuff, instead of trying to figure out why.

The only ones really suffering are the kids and families.

 

[jejton]

Simple way to answer is by asking you - if it was your kid who had a peanut allergy, what you say?

There's a difference between an ' allergy ' such as lactose intolerance or poison ivy and an anapylactic allergy to bee stings, peanuts or whatever. The first is easily controlled and more of an annoyance. The latter is deadly and in the setting of grade school, or pre-school, where everyone shares their snacks and lunches, much harder to control.

How about just letting her satisfy her peanut/chumus craving at home? As for sesame, is there a kid with a sesame allergy or is it simply that they are grouping that as nuts? Wouldn't hurt to discuss that with the powers that be and the school doctor as it might just be a non-medically educated person making a decision without proper information.

 

[thirty5]

Simple way to answer is by asking you - if it was your kid who had a peanut allergy, what you say?

There's a difference between an ' allergy ' such as lactose intolerance or poison ivy and an anapylactic allergy to bee stings, peanuts or whatever. The first is easily controlled and more of an annoyance. The latter is deadly and in the setting of grade school, or pre-school, where everyone shares their snacks and lunches, much harder to control.

How about just letting her satisfy her peanut/chumus craving at home? As for sesame, is there a kid with a sesame allergy or is it simply that they are grouping that as nuts? Wouldn't hurt to discuss that with the powers that be and the school doctor as it might just be a non-medically educated person making a decision without proper information.

I agree 100% with you.

I asked if any kids with a sesame allergy and I was told "well kids who are allergic to peanuts MAY be allergic to sesame"

That is not an answer.

It is not that she has a craving or anything. She eats healthy snacks at school. She is not allowed to have granola bars (cause of nuts), so she wanted hummus.

If my child was that allergic I would be flipping out if they were eating lunch in the lunch room at the table next to other kids eating what my kid is THAT allergic too.

In this case I am 99% sure that it is just easier to ban it and to satisfy one child that has a minor allergy. You would think that if this child had this "DEADLY" allergy there is no way that the child would be able to sit with the kids at lunch time.

Again I have plenty of compassion for the illness. But when does it become the responsibility of the parent of the ill child to work with the school to protect their child, but not totally changing the school.

I personally would not want to effect a whole classroom. I would rely on the teacher to make sure that during snack my child was watched like a hawk.

If my child was that allergic I would not even want my child in a situation where there is a chance to get into contact with the food. But if the child with the problem has to do something different like sit at different table away from other kids, or sit in the nurses office, then you are discriminating against that child. But tell my child that they cannot have something is discriminating against and punishing my child.

There has to be a happy medium.

You mentioned about sharing snacks?? This is a 1st grade class! Not a pre-k or preschool class. I'm sorry but the child at 6 years old should be taught what their illness is and how to protect themselves. I know that if I tell my daughter "You can never share your snacks with SoandSo, because they are allergic" it would be followed!

I said that I would not have a problem if my child was moved across the room and as far away as the allergic child. I am not being unreasonable and will work with the situation. But a blanket statement of NO SESAME because a child "MAY BE" allergic does not work for me!~

 

[lfsmarineguy]

There are a few factors at play here. Back when we were in school I'm sure some of us knew people with peanut allergies or bee allergies to the point where death without immediate treatment was always a possibility. I knew several bee sting people and maybe one or two with peanut allergies. The school was never draped in bug nets or hermetically sealed, nor were the snickers and other candy bars removed from the vending machines because there was a certain amount of personal accountability back then. I'm sure if you ask older people with peanut allergies they'll tell you they just stayed away from it and that's why it was never a big deal for the rest of us. Nobody was shining a light on it.

However, we also live in a litigious society where people are just waiting to get their foot rolled over by a shopping cart so they can own the store or spend the rest of their days in North Carolina collecting checks because their Tunze pump was overrated on the box. That kind of environment breeds the reactions that schools are basically forced into. If they don't go beyond what would normally be expected than in some peoples eyes, they aren't doing enough. If they don't ban the peanuts outright than whatever happens is their fault and I doubt local governments want to field lawsuits for child deaths. So they have to punish all and make a spectacle of the few in order to protect their own butts.

I don't have any kids but I can understand that it must be incredibly scary to send your kid to school everyday knowing that they are deathly allergic to something and you have no way of protecting them when they leave your sight. Plenty of people managed to survive with deadly peanut/bee allergies before and plenty will continue to survive now. Short of sending them to school in a giant plastic bubble every day the only choice is to make sure the child is fully aware of their situtation and knows what to avoid.

 

[thirty5]

Short of sending them to school in a giant plastic bubble every day the only choice is to make sure the child is fully aware of their situtation and knows what to avoid.

Very Well said.

I am getting more and more information from my daughter. I just found out that there is also an aide in the classroom at all times. So the ratio is probably 12:1.

I am going to recommend that they have the aide monitor the allergic children during snack time. I do not think that I am asking too much for this!

 

[bigsink]

I have been teaching for 15 years and have 2 kids. My daughter is in the allergy class and will deal with it just fine. I am of the "asthma" generation and did not know anybody with a peanut/food allergy growing up. I teach around 140 students every year in a middle school and I would say about 7-10% have peanut or severe food allergies. I have witnessed these numbers increase drastically over the past 10 years. Chicken/egg/poultry allergies appear to be on the rise as well. I once had a student that was deathly allergic to Mylar. Yes, the stuff those shiny balloons are made of. Not an expert, but I am a firm believer in the schools taking every precaution. I personally have delivered epi-pen injections to students/athletes over the years.

 

[duke62]

Who cares..send her to school with rice krispies.its a precaution to keep another kid safe.live with it.there are plenty of good nutricious foods out there you can send her with.if she loves peanut butter at 3:30 she can eat a jar.you are trying to protect your kids by giving them the food they want and another is protecting her kid from dying.i hear what you are saying in there are more and more allegies every year but thats how it is.peanut butter and other foods can be deadly by even the smell.can we be a little sensitive.think how the parent of the kid who has to worry every minute of every day they are not in sight of him or her..

 

[Jakef150]

i know the kids dont care about JUNK or healthy food and its REALLY THEIR PARENTs that most are often caused problem--> not kid who doesnt have any allregy.

I know this cuz it happened to me. 2 parents are whiny and bully toward to us but not their KIDS.. its parents like you will never understand.

 

[thirty5]

Who cares..send her to school with rice krispies.its a precaution to keep another kid safe.live with it.there are plenty of good nutricious foods out there you can send her with.if she loves peanut butter at 3:30 she can eat a jar.you are trying to protect your kids by giving them the food they want and another is protecting her kid from dying.i hear what you are saying in there are more and more allegies every year but thats how it is.peanut butter and other foods can be deadly by even the smell.can we be a little sensitive.think how the parent of the kid who has to worry every minute of every day they are not in sight of him or her..

I guess you didn't read my post. It is not about the peanut butter, I understand that there are bad allergies towards peanut butter. My problem is that they are now adding more items that people "may be allergic to".

I am not placing blame on the kids by any means. I am very sensitive of the allergy. The parent should be able to drop the child off at school and feel comfortable that the child will be safe.

If you think that safe is putting that child at one table that is next to another table that contains the deadly food, then people are crazy.

I will deal with the peanuts but the other items on the list is my problem.

i know the kids dont care about JUNK or healthy food and its REALLY THEIR PARENTs that most are often caused problem--> not kid who doesnt have any allregy.

I know this cuz it happened to me. 2 parents are whiny and bully toward to us but not their KIDS.. its parents like you will never understand.

The child never causes the problem, show me where I blamed the kid for having the allergy..

My kids actually like to eat healthy stuff, my daughter likes hummus (i personally dont like it).

I do understand, and I have offered the school to move my childs seat and do what is necessary to have a balance.

There are 22 kids in my childs class and there is teacher and an Aide so a ratio of 11:1.

Why can't the aide and teacher simply keep a better eye on the child during snack time for the 15 mins?

The school policy has MANY options that can be put into place, but they just decided on the most strict to make it easy.

There has to be a happy medium somewhere. Again it is not the peanuts, it is that now all of a sudden sesame was added, when it specifically states in the school policy that only peanuts are banned. They are changing the policy to just cover their ass.

 

[duke62]

i read your post maybe you didnt read my whole post..so what if they are adding more foods.does it negatively hurt your child to a way he or she will end up dying.no it doesnt but it can potentially kill the other child.read the list and just buy snacks that cant kill another child..put some dry cereal in a baggy thats a great snack.if they add every food imaginable then give your kid a water ice pop.your kid will be fine without food for a couple of hours.

 

[thirty5]

i read your post maybe you didnt read my whole post..so what if they are adding more foods.does it negatively hurt your child to a way he or she will end up dying.no it doesnt but it can potentially kill the other child.read the list and just buy snacks that cant kill another child..put some dry cereal in a baggy thats a great snack.if they add every food imaginable then give your kid a water ice pop.your kid will be fine without food for a couple of hours.

HA!

Do you have children? I guess some people are just more right-winged liberal than others. I believe in shared sacrifice! The balance is what I am looking for.