When E2 was diagnosed with a plethora of allergies and so plunged us into a startling new world of food dangers, I began researching the subject. I was hoping to educate myself in the science and management of her condition, but found myself diving head first into its politics. I had never considered that food allergies would have a political element to them — indeed, I had never much considered food allergies at all — so I was amazed when I discovered what an inflammatory issues they can raise, creating a reaction that often borders on hate in otherwise ordinary people.
It was our realtor who really got me thinking about it. He has a client who has recently had to sell her house and up sticks because the local school district has no peanut policy and it is simply too dangerous to send her son to school there. When I mentioned E2′s allergies, the realtor suggested that perhaps I ought to be researching local allergy policies as well, so that we don’t end up in the same situation in a few years’ time. I was gobsmacked — I’d been thinking of E2′s allergies in terms of eliminating foods, not potential houses and towns and school districts!
My initial reaction, as an inexperienced allergy-parent, is that I’d want E2′s school to eliminate her most dangerous allergens (nuts and eggs) as much as they reasonably could, at least during her youngest years, and to set an example of support for her that would present a firm stance against any bullying or dangerous behaviour by her classmates. To me, in my position, it seemed reasonable to want a school to take steps if it could to ensure that its allergic students were safe while they were in the school’s care. But I could quickly see from my research that, to many people, it was not. To what seemed to be the majority of people, it was more reasonable for allergic students to eat their lunches separated from the rest of the children — at another table or perhaps in another room — and to be excluded from activities that might be dangerous to them (school birthday celebrations, field trips), or even to be segregated out altogether — homeschooled — rather than to have their medical needs impact the food choices and activities of the rest of the school.
Realising that I am very new to this and that my gut reaction is hardly an impartial one, I took a poll on a internet-forum I belong to, to get a better feel for others’ thoughts on the subject. The reaction backed up what I’d suspected: over 60% felt that no foods should be banned from schools, even if there were students with severe allergies to them, and that the more reasonable course of action was to segregate allergic kids to reduce the danger. I came away better educated, but deeply disheartened. I do not want E2 to be singled-out like that, ostracised from lunches and school activities. School is hard and children are cruel… I was hoping for a different attitude to emerge from my research, one that made it easier for my daughter to blend in rather than be excluded.
At one point in the discussion, I asked if severe allergies could be considered a disability. I was thinking in terms of them being recognised as the legitimate and serious medical conditions that they are — rather than less serious food preferences or intolerances as they often seem to be regarded — and thus being afforded a legal status which would compel schools to take the sorts of measures that are required for children with conventional disabilities. I was not trying to denigrate the enormous challenges that the disabled face or even to put allergies on the same level, just trying to think of a legal umbrella under which they could be placed, but my suggestion caused some offense in the discussion. I saw the point, suddenly suspected I was acting like the sort of over-precious parents that I instinctively dislike, and backed away. But I still wondered where allergies could be placed on the spectrum between full disability and full “normality”. Certainly a child who is only minutes away from death should he come into contact with a wayward peanut must be considered to be some distance away from “normal” on that spectrum. And when the penalty is that quick and that severe, are his parents over-reacting if they want to control his environment to remove that possibility as much as is possible?
So I was intrigued to see, only a couple of weeks later, that the Office of Civil Rights has asked a school board to re-examine its decision that a child with severe allergies did not have a disability and so did not warrant a 504 plan. The OCR found that,
“the Division’s decision that the Student is ineligible for Section 504 services could result in death or serious illness of the student, and that this case therefore involves ‘extraordinary circumstances’ that support a substantive OCR review of the result of that decision.”
It would appear there is something to this disability debate — something that, while rightly not calling an allergy a disability in the same sense as more conventional disabilities, yet still may eventually compel schools to take measures that handle allergies from a position of inclusion rather than exclusion, integration rather than segregation, accommodation rather than anger. I imagine the parents of children with conventional disabilities wanted the same for their children when the possibility of mainstream schooling first became a reality for them, and I suspect there was a similar hostility from the general public to the changes it would require, which has lessened over time. I hope that eventually severe food allergies can come to be seen in the same way.
And there is an unrealistic part of me that hopes that struggle can all be sorted and finished within the next four years, for E2′s sake.
Stumble it!
Most, if not all schools, here ban nuts entirely from the entire building. Unfortunately, it often seems to be a massive overreaction that is leading to resentment. Peanut allergies have no relation to other nuts, so banning walnuts and almonds from lunches is going to do nothing to protect a child with a peanut sensitivity. All that does is to make it unnecessarily difficult for other parents to prepare lunches for their children.
But, it’s quite heartening to see more and more packaged snacks proclaiming their manufacture in a “peanut-free facility”.
Yes, I think its understandable that over-reaction will lead to resentment and, personally, I think schools should only enact bans if they actually have a child for whom a ban would be truly beneficial. For instance, E2′s dairy allergy is moderate, so a dairy ban would be both highly disruptive and pretty much unnecessary, whereas if a school has a child with a really severe peanut allergy, a ban on peanuts would be much less difficult but provide really tangible risk reduction. I think it’s all about being reasonable on both sides of the equation.
I don’t know what the most sensible solution is that is fair to everyone but I do agree that it’s a problem. Why are people so hostile about not being able to give their child a freakin’ peanut butter or almond butter sandwich?! I mean, come on. If you can’t think of ANYTHING else you could make for your kid’s lunch, you’re seriously lacking in the creativity and common sense departments. The reason ALL nuts get banned, not just peanuts, is because most nut factories handle them all and can not promise that no traces of peanuts will be found in other varieties of nut. So just don’t pack nuts in your kids’ lunches and hey presto! there’s at least half the problem solved. I really don’t get why it’s so complicated…
Now, things like dairy and eggs and gluten, that’s a different kettle of fish and I don’t know how best it would be to tackle that one. You’d undoubtedly get some parents of kids allergic to those things beating their chests about banning those foods if they’re going to ban peanuts for the nut allergy kids, which could lead to big problems for the school districts if they are seen as giving one allergy priority over others just because it’s easier to deal with.
I can sort of see why segregating the allergy kids during lunch might make sense but I don’t think it would be fair to ban them from birthday parties or other fun activities involving food, that would really be exclusionary to those children. So I don’t know what the answer is and I don’t envy the people tackling these issues. It must be very scary and frustrating for parents who just want to protect their kids from harm and for them to have a normal life at school. Those who roll their eyes and harp on about these parents being ‘precious’ have obviously never encountered a situation where their child’s life was in severe danger. Even if they don’t agree with the proposed solutions they could at least have more empathy for the emotions behind it.
You may be in luck. It might really be sorted out by then. Senator Dodd (D-CT), who has a FA daughter, is sponsoring legislation requiring a uniform school policy to manage food allergies. FAAN (www.foodallergy.org) has more info if you’re interested.
In the meantime, my son with multiple, severe food allergies, including peanut, dairy, and egg, is attending preK and starting Kindergarten in the fall. It’s been challenging, making sure teachers really understand the safety issues and be prepared to administer lifesaving medication in an emergency. I agree with the rationale for treating peanuts differently, since it tends to be a far more severe and potentially fatal reaction.
To me, birthday parties are far different. My son has a right to attend a public school in a safe setting. A birthday party is a private social event. Hopefully the host will be sensitive to my son’s needs. I always offer to bring safe cupcakes to share with everyone that will fit the party’s theme. So far it’s gone well. (Right now I’m planning cupcakes with a “Bug’s Life Movie” theme.)
I know I’ve benefited from the efforts of FA parents that have gone through our school system before me. I hope your daughter has a safe environment waiting for her when she reaches school age!
The primary school near our flat in Edinburgh banned all nuts. The same is true for the elementary school in Moose Jaw where Kate’s preschool was located. I agree–peanut allergies are serious enough that if the school has a rule against bringing them–parents should gladly comply, knowing that they would be grateful if it was THEIR child with an allergy. I agree with NS–there are many other things to pack for lunch/snack.
How I feel for you! I have two with severe food allergies…It would be wonderful to thik public schools in the US each have a food policy, and that it was written down, and it was available to anyone who asks…but reality is far from ideal. My personal experience with elementary schools has been wonderful at times and outrageous at others. Even a written policy does not guarentee the school is a well run, understanding and caring environment for any child with any disability. Realtors do not seem to know anything about food allergies, except negative stories in the news. Finding local parnt support groups is a great way for finding out what it is really like in specific schools. When we decided the only way to keep our 5th grade son safe was to move to a new school district, I was able to get names and email addresses of local parents-of-children-having-allergies in our targeted new towns. I asked them the questions I was worried about and found out what was happening now in that school. I could no longer wait for people to “get it”. My advise is to take what the school says about their food allergy policies with a grain of salt, and then find someone somehow to ask directly the reality of how they would treat and guide and educated your special child. If you end up looking in the Chicago area, write back! You will find the ideal place– they do exist as I found one!
Well I have just on thing to say, my son has several food allergies dair and eggs are the most deadly to him. I say it this was becasue I noticed that several people here place peanut allergies above other allergies. This is why there are so many problems with children with allergies. It is not , well peanut is more dangerous than dairy, etc. It is what is most dangerous to the person or persons with allergies. Peanuts make my son a little red and a little itchy. Dairy and egg can kill him with in a n hour without treatment. Don’t minimize the threat of death based on the type of food. This will help all parents with children who have allergies. My son is two. I am a single parent and i cannot afford to stay home, but I do. My family of three suffers because my son’s life is more important than public policy. There are days I do expect day cares to change to a safe atmosphere for my son. But I feel that is a much bigger challenge than I am prepared to take on. It would be nice if more business would open geared toward allergies since it seems to be more “normal” than people care to recognize. It is exhausting to raise a child with deadly allergies. I say it this way because, if you notice, when media discusses severe, it is never close to deathe people think a broken leg is severe, but a leg that has been cut of is different. Parents have to learn to say what is truly going on withtheir children. I found that when I said sever, as I was told I was shrugged off and labled over protected. When i asked my doctor again for conformation that my son could die from his allergies and to clarifiy the time frame he was talking about, he explained less that 60 minuets depending on how much he had consumed, the more consumed, the less time. I no long use severe and I am recieved differently especially by those who hear me say my son suffer from food allergies. Once I correct them they actually become more concerned and more helpful. I wish all the parents of childrend like mine all the liuck in the world and please don’t back down whenit comes to protecting our children. I know I won’t.
I never considered my allergy to be a big deal…we always showed a video that had an elephant who couldn’t eat peanuts in it, at the beginning of each year until 3rd grade, and everything was fine. Kids aren’t always that bad; I’ve gone to three schools, and haven’t had any problems that weren’t my own fault.
In terms of birthday parties, why not have your child bring their own treat? That’s what we did; at the beginning of every year, we brought in a bag of hard candy that I could eat, and whenever someone brought in cake or cookies that I couldn’t have, I’d get a piece of candy, or a couple Twizzlers. (Of course, here I assume that the treats don’t actually have nut/peanuts-they simply MIGHT contain TRACES, so you’re only in danger if you eat something. Once again, people were told about the allergy-letters were sent out, so people knew they weren’t supposed to bring in food with peanuts or treenuts. It’s just most people without allergies don’t always see those tiny labels at the bottom, underneath the ingredients that say a product has been processed on a plant that also processes nuts.)
The other thing to remember when you have kids with allergies is that they’ll start looking out for themselves at some point too, and things’ll get easier.
I guess all I’m trying to say is that I wouldn’t worry too much about it. I’ve survived fourteen years going to public schools with no banning or anything, and though I’m not sure how severe my allergy is compared to others, it’s definitely life-threatening.
I had a kid in the same class from the fourth grade ’till the end of high school. He was deathly allergic to peanuts, so much that if another kid had eaten peanuts and touched him with peanut dust on their hands, he could go into anaphylaxis. I myself, suffer from severe allergies to fragrance (enough that my throat has closed off) but have had many people say to me, “Well, can’t you just use an inhaler and carry around an epi-pen or two?” Fortunately for my friend, though, the schools here were very understanding of his peanut allergies. For fifth grade camp, an announcement was made: “One of your classmates is deathly allergic to peanuts. If you don’t want your friend to die at camp, please make sure that you do not bring ANY peanuts with you to the camp.” They also released flyers and notified parents by phone, of course. They did not share his name, and we were all scared enough that one of our friends might die, so he was able to go camping with all of us even though the nearest hospital was at least a 2-hour drive away. I think that informing the children was a good idea, because any parent who throws a fit about “silly kids and their preferences” would be countered with an innocent, caring child who says, “But mommy, he could DIE. I don’t want ANY peanuts.” What parents can argue with that? Peanuts were not barred from the school campuses, though. Probably because the hospital was just down the road. I was in band with him for seven years and never once saw him use a needle. We also had a non-formal understanding to never bring anything with peanuts on a band trip. I have no idea whether his parents pushed for peanuts to be banned from the school. Perhaps not. But I know the kids cared, when informed. Sometimes you don’t need it in writing to make the school a safer place. =)
I am appauled that any of you agree to use emotional blackmail to get students to not bring peanuts. Where are your heads? It makes all the FA parents sound crazy. It is very wrong to put that burden on children. We have one Mom who has gone up to children as young as 5 out in public demanding they stop eating something. She will say “you don’t want *** to die, do you? If you eat that near her, she will die”. Displacing your fear onto children is sick. Even in the school system, it is the wrong approach. Positive education is the only way. You will only make all FA parents look bad and turn your community against you.
I am concerned (correction: infuriated) about a new policy at my son’s preschool. There is 1 child who has a peanut/nut allergy, who’s parents knew that the school was not allergy-free when they enrolled. Now, all of a sudden, the school has posted that they will throw away any food containing nuts from my child’s lunch and “provide an alternative” (which of course they do not care if there are sensitivities or allergies to). I am upset because this was not the policy when my child enrolled and I would not have enrolled him, if this was the case. We do not eat the “soy alternatives” due to an intolerance (not allergy) to these products. I need to know how to proceed with caution from parents of allergic children. Of course, due to privacy rules, the severity of the child’s allergy cannot be revealed. My child is not allergic and this allergic child has been enrolled at the preschool without incident for several month.
Hi CamMom,
I am wondering if you can explain what about this makes you so angry? Why do you feel you wouldn’t have enrolled your child in this preschool if they’d had a no nuts policy already in place?
I understand you saying that he has been in the school for several months without incident but, to be honest, that doesn’t mean the situation was actually *safe* any more than if, for instance, a person didn’t wear their seatbelt for several months without incident.
It may be that this policy has come about at the parents’ insistence *or* it may be that the preschool, upon finding out that they have a severely allergic child, has decided the risk of liability is too great if they allowed peanuts and then there was an incident and taken the decision themselves.
It is a shame when situations like this must inconvience other families who attend the same school, and when other intolerances/allergies are not afforded the same treatment. However, if those intolerances/allergies are not at the same severe, life-threatening level, then it is understandable that such drastic measures don’t need to be applied to them.
It has all gone too far, hasn’t it? Next it will be someone is allergic to cotton, so should the school ban cotton? Get real people.
Do blind people lobby for the ban of all people to drive? See how stupid that is? And yet, that is what we have going on. Because, a blind person could die if they tried to drive….right? Right. But stupid if they started to lobby for a complete ban on driving for everyone.
FAAN has taken things too far. Keep in mind a few things:
the laws protecting allergies are only accomidating based on age. It is EXPECTED that children move toward self regulation, NOT regulate planet earth! If you have a child with allergies, it is your responsibility to teach the child how to manage the allergy in the real world. This includes school. There are crazy parents out there making crazy demands on the public school system. Like one parent, who demands paper for her daughter always be pulled from the middle of a ream of paper because she is so afraid the top paper might have an allergen on it. ??? Get real. If the allergy is that bad, please homeschool!
The more you withhold exposure the worse you make the allergy. Remember, minimal exposure is a healthy way to help your child. It builds resistance! We have so many friends who rode it out instead of making stupid rediculous demands on the system, and they are ALIVE and HEALTHY and well. FAAN should be BAAANed.
Balance, I am wondering if you have any personal experience of a food allergy? I am puzzled as to on what you base your claims that exposure is a “healthy way to help your child”? Everything I have ever read or experienced has shown that exposure to even a minuscule amount of an allergen can send an extremely allergic person into a life-threatening attack. Do you have some reliable evidence that you can cite that contradicts this?
Many people see the banning of nuts as infuriating and frustrating. What most don’t realize is yes there are other severe allergies out there but the NUT /Peanut is the number 1 killer when it come to food allergies. it only takes 1/1000th of a trace of peanut oil or residue to kill someone with these types of allergies.
Yes the children need to learn to self regulate but think about it a minute did the child all the sudden potty train or feed themselves or how about talk. you say one word and miraculously they can speak and understand like adults NO. It takes time and maturity for anyone to learn.
Some children understand earlier. I’m sorry that schools/pre dont’ think about intolerances as much as a allergy that could take a life. it’s sad. I understand the financial side of trying to figure out what to feed your child that is healthy and inexpensive.
As for the homeschooling issue that i see many post about- that makes me made because by LAW ALL CHILDREN HAVE A RIGHT TO FREE PUBLIC EDUCATION not just those who dont have deadly allergies. Some parents can’t homeschool, don’t have the credentials, or even have the homeschooling permission from the homeschool board. It’s not like the child is the only one who could have these issues, it could be a teacher or a janitor or someone else.
It’s not appalling for a child to be aware of another childs allergy or standing up to protect them, it’s no different from a child with diabetes neither child asked for this to happen to them, allergies are more common today and rising. my six yr old has to be aware of everything to help protect her brother who’s 2 who doesn’t understand.
It doesn’t matter if your a child or a adult when you develop these allergies the result is the same, someone with severe allergies could die. work place put some of the same bands depending on where you work.
I understand there are other severe reactions to other foods, it just that nut allergies are rising at a alarming rate- it’s more than doubled in the last 5 yrs.
my daughter has no food allergies whereas my son has 14 MAJOR Food allergies that could kill him. the one that worries me the most is the nuts, because normally it only takes minutes for someone to die and is the number 1 known food killer.
I worry about all severe allergies and think steps to protect all of them, how right now i cant tell you what is the best way. but all severe allergies can fall under the disabilities act and section 504. By law schools have to accomodate these children just like they do a blind or deaf person or a person who’s first language isn’t english.
People make the comments why should one person affect so many others? well why did Martin Luther King JR. or Mother teresa They were just one voice that turned into many and helped many.
And i ask when did a Sandwich or NUTS become more important in America than a PERSON”S LIFE.
Balance:
Emotional blackmail? If a fellow student could TRULY die (and I am still friends with this boy, so I know who in particular it is, and the parents and school administrators did not lie), is it emotional blackmail to inform students at a school of this danger? We also had a girl with diabetes and she learned to advocate for herself that she couldn’t eat sugary foods. It was no problem for the rest of us — we could still eat cupcakes and she’d have herself an apple and peanut butter then sneak off the the restroom to give herself insulin whenever it was needed. But understand… when a child is allergic to something in such a way that simply touching particles could kill him within minutes… Children who -don’t- understand will just resent the fact that a student is preventing them from eating peanut butter sandwiches freely.
Which is more traumatic: Knowing that a fellow student could be put at danger if you bring a substance on school grounds — or unknowingly bringing a substance on school grounds and CAUSING the death of that student?
I’d rather be “emotionally blackmailed” than lose a good friend, honestly. How being informed of a reality is blackmail, I’m not certain. Seems to me it would have been rather unfair to just say “don’t bring peanuts” and offer absolutely no explanation. One of my biggest frustrations when I was a child was to get rules that made no sense, and be offered no explanation. Being offered information does not cause burden. It shows respect, and offers children a chance to be responsible for their own environment…
Inadvertently causing the death of a good friend — now THAT’s a burden.
By severe, I assume you mean airborne. (That is, that your son is one of the unfortunate few to have a severe/life-threatening reaction just from being *near* someone who’s eating peanuts.)
Any severe or life threatening reaction to an airborne substance is indeed a disability, by law. It may not fit into the stereotypes of someone who is mobility impaired or blind or something, but it does limit major life activities.
Think about it. Your son could encounter people eating peanuts almost anywhere in public. He’s going to need a car, because we’re a long way from being able to ban people from eating peanuts on sidewalks or at public transit stops. Even then, he’ll probably never be able to go to any restaurant that serves anything with peanuts. And he’s going to fight this fight at any workplace he wants to work at.
Basically, his safety, his very life, depends on the actions of those around him. That is a severe disability, and he’s going to have to start learning about all the relevant laws.
Complain to the OCR. Better yet, have your son draft the complaint, and then help him edit it. Believe me, the practice will do him good.