School makes all 1st-graders rinse out their mouths before class - b/c one child has peanut allergy

[FLAprogressive]

It's a dramatic step even in the age of strict health and safety.

A public school in Florida is making all its first-grade pupils rinse out their mouths and wash their hands before coming into class and after lunch - because one child has a severe peanut allergy.

Teachers must continually wipe down desks with Clorox wipes, children cannot bring in outside food for parties and a peanut-sniffing dog has even been brought into the school grounds.

Angry parents protested against the strict measures outside the gates of Edgewater Elementary School, Florida, last week. They are designed to protect one six-year-old girl, who has not been named.

They claim their children are losing time in class and are having their faces wiped with Clorox. One mother even said the rules - which also ban all peanut products - were intruding on her child's right to have peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch.

But Tracey Bailey, the girl's mother, told Fox her daughter has a life-threatening peanut allergy and could die if she comes into contact with any trace of the nut.

According to a letter issued by the school, she could have a severe reaction just from sitting next to a pupil who had eaten peanuts.

Mrs Bailey said: 'We're not talking about she will break out in a rash. We are talking about she will die, stop breathing.'

*snip*

But a mother at the school, Carrie Starkey, said: 'On average, it’s probably taking a good 30 minutes out of the day. That’s my child’s education. Thirty minutes could be a whole subject.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1366826/School-makes-graders-rinse-mouths-class--ONE-CHILD-peanut-allergy.html#ixzz1GrbJP3TM

----

:popcorn:

[TransitJohn]

1. I will always feel it's that parent's responsibility.

Keep your kid home for god's sake.

[Deep13]

26. So, how is she to be educated and socialized?

Frankly, I'm glad to see the school taking the community responsibility approach. I don't think wiping the kids' faces with clorox is such a good idea, assuming that is accurate.

[WinkyDink]

59. That is asinine. The issue is potential DEATH vs. others' PLEASURE.

[walldude]

81. Make her live in a plastic bubble.

we can't be avoiding peanuts just because this kid might DIE. I mean it's peanuts, how can we live without them.. THE HORROR... :eyes:

Really, keep her home? That's your solution? No contact with the outside world? How very... human of you.

[lapfog_1]

2. Of course

Peanuts are NOT nuts. Neither are cashews.

[Fumesucker]

3. Wrong smiley for this subject..

[Shagbark Hickory]

4. Wipe their faces with Clorox?

What a great idea!

[Maru Kitteh]

19. Pure ignorance indeed! So-called "educated" people are treating a protein as a pathogen.

Which might be appropriate if they were trying to contain mad cow disease..... but then clorox would do them no good... they'd have to haul the classroom off to an incinerator and then bury it but I digress......

What the hell do they think they're trying to "kill" with the clorox? It's a kid with an allergy, not a C.difficile outbreak.

[Shagbark Hickory]

48. Never mind the peanuts. It just seems like a fabulous idea to me!

Wipe off those walking viral, bacterial snot monsters with some Clorox. :silly:

[panzerfaust]

5. Home Schooling

If the allergy *is* as bad as claimed, then that is the only logical and fair action to take.

[FLAprogressive]

8. gotta wonder if that is financially feasible....

[CLANG]

74. How is the mother going to get

the rest of the outside world to hold to the same practices as the school does? If the kid is that sensitive to peanuts she should probably only go outside as a "bubble" girl.

[northernlights]

119. bingo.

If her allergies are that severe, how does she go anyplace outside her home?

[Lucian]

78. I agree.

But of course some here believe EVERYONE should accommodate ONE.

:eyes:

[laundry_queen]

87. As a parent

if my child had an allergy THAT severe, there is no freakin' way on this earth I'd let her go to school and hope that everyone else would remember, every single day, to be as vigilant as I was. If my child's life was as stake, I wouldn't be putting their life in the hands of dozens of OTHER people. I honestly think that if homeschooling is not feasible (financially or otherwise) that there should be some sort of disability classification for children like this who require extra special care and that they should, in general, be kept separate from the rest of the school population.

Also, as a single mom with a tight budget, and children with zero food allergies, it IS a hardship for me to find peanut-free foods for my kids to take to school for their lunches. It's a lot more expensive. A ham sandwich is many times the cost of a peanut butter sandwich. I do it because I don't want a child to die so my kids can save me some money, but honestly, I am not sure some of these parents understand how much others are sacrificing for their children. Just once, I'd like one of these parents who have children who have deadly allergies to send out a message to the other parents in the class thanking them for their sacrifices as well.

[Poll_Blind]

6. The child should not be in public school. Period.

If they are that incredibly sensitive to peanuts there is no way the school is going to prevent the child from coming in contact with it. Eventually, the dice are going to come up snake eyes. As they move up in grades the likelihood of a reaction goes up exponentially, IMO.

This child has an allergy so severe they should not be in public school.

PB

[CLANG]

75. All it takes is one stupid a-hole of a kid to play a "joke" and she's done.

[KamaAina]

92. Or a parent

see #32 below. :banghead:

[CLANG]

94. Crap, I missed that! Unbelievable. Must be listening to Rush and Beck.

[readmoreoften]

96. What if they can't afford private school and homeschooling isn't possible?

[NeedleCast]

7. Only in America

Why is your child in public school if her peanut allergy is so severe? Wouldn't the act of leaving the house put her at risk? I feel bad for the little girl but such draconian measures seem to be a major waste of time any money.

[cali]

11. It would be cheaper for the district and less burdensome for the district to

pay for a home tutor.

[NeedleCast]

25. Problem: That option makes far too much sense

At some level I understand that a parent would want their kid to be able to socialize in a school with their peers, if the allergy is THAT severe, why risk it?

Plus, I simply don't understand the brain that is capable of thinking that all the people around you must not do something because of you. How long is it before we see peanut allergy parents demanding that local restaurants not use peanut or peanut based prodcuts on their menu because at any moment the restaurant could be hit by a meteorite and spray deadly peanut-laced gasses in all directions?

[cali]

31. I had a friend whose son had allerigies to just about everything

he went to school but was tutored in an office away from other kids and personnel- he was allergic to such things as deodorants, perfume, detergent, etc.

[Arugula Latte]

55. She could probably find some safe group activities for her where she could socialize.

Like swim team. The kids are in chlorine and they're being "washed" constantly.

[cali]

9. I think this goes far beyond a reasonable accomodation and encroaches on the rights

of all the child's classmates. And it can't be good for the kid in question, socially- and that's pretty important.

[LiberalFighter]

13. If the child continues to grow up and go to school what will be the results

of interaction with other kids? Kids can get pretty mean. What happens if a peanut product is used accidentally or on purpose by other kids?

[LynneSin]

36. If I was the kid with the allergies I'd be pissed at my parents

Because they are making me a pariah in my own school.

[tammywammy]

54. +1 n/t

[secondwind]

10. TRAIN THE KID TO CARRY AN EPI PEN AT ALL TIMES AND KNOW HOW TO USE IT. Case solved.

[Maru Kitteh]

20. Exactly! And the teachers, the whole staff if needed. That's what I was screaming in my head....

IT"S CALLED A FREAKIN' EPI-PEN!

DUH.

[Dappleganger]

57. Our oldest son carried an EpiPen on him attached to his belt from 1st grade on...

his tree/grass allergies were that severe. There was an EpiPen in his classroom and another in the school clinic. Thankfully they never needed to use it but it was there just in case. On bad allergy days he would just stay inside in the air conditioning instead of going out during recess--no harm, no foul. His allergies eventually lessened in severity as he grew older (he's 17 now) and he no longer carries the Epi on him.

[cloudbase]

12. Does she take her daughter out in public?

She may cross paths with somebody who has a Snickers bar on their breath.

[DrDan]

14. the school has to both (1) take the child as a student and (2) deal with this problem

I guess the student could be isolated. I live in this District - and I can state categorically that the District is sooooo stretched financially, there is no way a certified teacher could be provided for isolated instruction. And it will only get worse next year under the cretin rick scott.

Short of that, seems like they are trying to protect the child.

I find it hard to criticize their efforts. That child's health is important and worthy of protection.



Of course, a charter school could just deny admittance. And that seems to be the appropriate response for many here. So perhaps that is the answer.

[NeedleCast]

27. Sounds like it would be far cheaper to have the school provide a private tutor

than to continue with what it's doing now. How much does a year's worth of disinfectant wipes and mouth wash for 100's of kids cost? How much does having a peanut sniffing dog on patrol cost?

What do you do if one of the kids has an allergy to something in mouthwash?

[FLAprogressive]

28. Supposedly it costs the taxpayers nothing but I don't buy that -- where does the $$$ come from?

[DrDan]

32. well - if that is the solution to keeping the student safe, then I have no problem with it.

I am sure isolation was considered.

My point was that there is an obligation on the part of the school, and it seems to me they are trying to live up to it.



As an interesting follow-up, the child's identity has been compromised. Some parents have threatened the student by spreading peanut butter on backpacks of classmates. The situation has become so unsafe for this child, that the parent have had to remove her from the school.

[renate]

63. OMG that is SICK

Who would do a thing like that? I'd be embarrassed if my first-grader did it as a prank, not knowing it was serious--I just can't believe an adult would try to kill a child. People depress me....

[DrDan]

65. I agree - and that person should be prosecuted to the fullest extent - no worse than

threatening that child's life.

[CLANG]

79. It's not a good solution

It's like playing Russian Roulette with one bullet, but maybe with more chambers (200-300?). But in the end there's a good chance she'll be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

[devils chaplain]

15. I just want to know...

Were there cases of people dropping dead left and right because of this before the "awareness"? Didn't every school and Mom in America give their kids p+j sandwiches?

[October]

17. Peanut butter is strictly banned in a lot of schools

I've seen children (and parents) chastised on many occasions because they forgot or brought in a candy or sandwich with peanut butter.

Even many after school clubs and activities now regularly ban peanut butter.

[devils chaplain]

18. That's just "nuts". N/T

[Wickerman]

23. Peanut allergies are an increasing problem

There's a lot of information out there, here is a quick link:

http://www.medpagetoday.com/AllergyImmunology/Allergy/20113

They found that the prevalence of combined peanut and tree allergies among children was 2.1%, compared with 0.6% in 1997.

For peanut allergy alone, prevalence was 1.4%, compared with just 0.4% in 1997.

Allergies to tree nuts alone increased to 1.1% in 2008, up from 0.2% in 1997.

Tree and peanut allergies remained steady among adults, at a rate of 1.3%.

The researchers also noted that the prevalence of peanut allergy among U.S. children is similar to estimates from Canada, Australia, and the U.K.

Its increase could be attributable to the "hygiene hypothesis" -- the idea that less exposure to allergens and bacteria in childhood leave the immune system underdeveloped and vulnerable, the researchers speculated.

[LynneSin]

39. I've read about that - we're over santizing everything so much that we can't properly develop ...

when it comes to our bodies own defense mechanisms.

Hand Sanitizers should only be used in situations where soap & water are not accessible whatsoever.

Camping or an event that utilizes portapotties. I'll keep sanitizers around for that. But other than that give me soap & water.

[Arugula Latte]

58. I tried not to oversanitize things when my kids were little.

I'd let 'em get dirty, and they were knee-deep in kitty fur from the time they were babies. :) That was my big fear -- that one of my kids would be allergic to kitties and we'd have to make a terrible choice of which one stayed. ;)

[LynneSin]

71. Oh that's easy - just unload the kids

:hide:

(just kidding for folks who don't know me)

[Lyric]

41. I'm sure that's part of it.

It's also because medical science has advanced enough that SEVERELY allergic children are far more likely to survive childhood and grow up to have kids of their own. Peanut allergies do tend to run in families, so naturally the incidence of severe allergy would be increasing with every new generation. Hopefully we'll be able to isolate the gene(s) responsible for allergies like this and develop some sort of gene therapy to "neutralize" them.

[LibertyLover]

51. Had an interesting run-in with a friend several years ago -

my daughter is adopted from China. She is from a province that puts peanuts in food, so from a very early age she was eating them. We brought her home at 16 months and never considered not giving her peanut butter or allowing her to eat peanuts. Several months after we brought her home we went to a holiday party at a friend's house. My kid went off exploring and came back with peanut M&Ms. One of the other women there had a daughter who was a few months younger than my daughter. She saw Bethan with the candy and came running to let me know that my daughter was less than 3 years old and eating peanuts (cue scary movie music!). I gently informed her that said child had been eating peanuts from a very early age and they hadn't killed her yet. The mother was upset and told me in no uncertain terms that her pediatrician had forbidden her to feed her child peanuts until she was at least 3. I told her my pediatrician had told me no such thing. Fast forward a few years and it turns out that her kid has a moderate peanut allergy and my kid doesn't. I honestly think there is something to the hygiene hypothesis.

[laundry_queen]

88. I read some study

not too long ago, and a lot of pediatricians and allergists are now changing their tunes about when to introduce a food. Basically, if a child was introduced to a food early on, and CONTINUED to eat it, the chances of allergy were less than those who were introduced to it later in life. The children who had the highest incidence of allergy to a particular food were those who had a bit when they were very little, but then it was entirely removed from their diet for a long time and reintroduced later. So the recommendation now is not that you have to wait to introduce it, but that once you DO, you must continue to give them that particular food.

That's pretty much what I did with my kids. They were introduced to things like peanut butter and eggs earlier than what the guidelines are, but I made sure they had some every few days until they were school aged. None of my kids have food allergies despite the fact that it runs in the family (my brother has anaphylactic -sp? spell checker can't find the right word - reactions to fish and some other seafood, I have a slight hazelnut allergy). I think breastfeeding them helped as well. Also, I kept my house quite, um, untidy when they were little. Not on purpose, just overwhelmed when I had 3 kids 5 & under. I like to think my bad housekeeping helped, lol.

[LibertyLover]

97. Not only was, and is, our house, shall we say, less than

Martha Stewart approved tidy, but when we brought her home we had five dogs. We are down to 2 now, but plan on adopting a husky again in the fall. Bethan sprawled with the dogs, shared her food with them, had them lick her. So, I figured that if the kid ever develops an allergy it's not going to be to peanuts, dogs or dust. :rofl:

[HuckleB]

106. My guess is that your friend or her child's father, or both, has asthma.

The "wait until 3 years old" advice was being given out, but only to parents with histories of asthma.

[gkhouston]

109. Not necessarily. My daughter is severely allergic to peanuts. Her first bad exposure

was around the age of 1. She was curious about the Thai food we were eating for supper, so we gave her a taste of the peanut/coconut/curry sauce on rice. What a disaster.

[HuckleB]

103. A lot of that is increased diagnosis, not necessarily prevalence.

In other words, most kids are not going to die from a single molecule.

[MindPilot]

105. I know...I never even heard of a peanut allergy until a couple years ago

I am still amazed that I made it past 6th grade. (I think that's when I had my first cigarette that wasn't second hand or in utero)

[HuckleB]

107. I might have my numbers wrong...

... but a study was done that reported that 30 some percent of adults believe they have a "food allergy," despite epidemiology noting that the number is less than five percent.

[sweetloukillbot]

116. I had a friend who for years thought she had an allergy to onions.

Severe - she was convinced she would die if she had even the slightest taste of onion in anything.
Turns out her sister didn't like onions, so her mom told her that she was allergic when she was toddler so she wouldn't have to make food with onions for the family. My friend believed it until her sister told her the truth when she was in her 30s...

[southernyankeebelle]

16. If I was that worried for my child I would keep her home. Yep home school the child.

[WinkyDink]

61. Really? You would just up and quit your job? And beg for money at "recess"?

[Zoeisright]

122. Plus ten million.

What is wrong with people, anyway? Some people think they're so fucking good at solving other people's problems. I think that's one of the main things wrong with this country.

[Obamanaut]

21. Interesting that the article says the student has not been named, but the

same article gives the name of the mother.

"...one six-year-old girl, who has not been named...."

"...But Tracey Bailey, the girl's mother..."

Having the girl's mother named would be sort of a clue, one would think.

[cbdo2007]

42. Yep....after an Intelius search it looks like the daughter's name is...

Bethany E Bailey or Susan Renee Bailey

Just posting to prove a point. The internet is scary!! I hate that this information is out there about me and my family as well.

[Thunderstruck]

49. And that information is there even on people who are dilligent about

their online privacy or who don't even have internet.

[cbdo2007]

68. Yep...

Sometimes I'll do it just a hobby, snoop around on various govt. web sites and Intelius, etc. just to see what all info I can find out about people. I actually work for a website and we have a lot of users who are afraid to sign-up because they are afraid their identity will get stolen - just by providing an email address and password, name and year of birth. Really, I can already find that stuff out about them, so it's no use not signing up with us because you're afraid of that info getting out there.

Unless you're President Obama and your birth details are in doubt...ha ha (sarcasm)

[lapislzi]

22. How is this child going to live in the world as she grows up?

Clearly, she can never go to a supermarket, mall, large retail store, movies, or restaurant, because peanuts are in evidence just about everywhere.

What about when she is in a workplace? Will peanuts be banned from the building? Will colleagues have to swab down upon arriving at work?

Is this person doomed to wandering the globe in a hazmat suit?

This sounds so extreme it almost doesn't make sense.

[FLAprogressive]

24. Easy, everyone she meets gets a mouth wiping and a mouth rinsing!

[LynneSin]

35. I've always wondered what happened to these kids with severe allergies

One day they grow up and they won't be able to live in a world where everything can be coated in hand santizer for their protection.

[LynneSin]

29. This is the perfect opportunity for home schooling

I would be absolutely PISSED if my child has his/her face wiped down with Clorox. Some of us have reaction to Clorox, if I smell the stuff I start gagging, if it's bad I'll be puking.

[etherealtruth]

104. Especially considering they aren't needing to kill a pathogen ...

... the Clorox thing is nonsensical

[cbdo2007]

30. This is ridiculous. The school needs to put her in her own room or

put her in the corner 5 feet away from the other students.

Sounds like the mom needs some attention and is using her poor daughter to get it.

[LynneSin]

33. BTW, those hand sanitizers and clorox will only affect the kids in a negative way

Which would piss me off too. There have been studies about excessive use of hand sanitizers that show it will increase bacteria resistance overtime meaning that the child will only become more vulnerable to diseases.

I refuse to use hand sanitizers unless I'm in a situation where hand washing is difficult to do like outdoor camping or at a function where there are only portapotties. Effective handwashing is all you need to kill the nasties after touching them.

[Lyric]

34. What does Clorox have to do with peanut proteins?

They aren't viruses or bacteria. Clorox isn't going to help "disinfect" anything because germs are not the problem. There's nothing to "kill". Plain old soap and warm water would probably do a better job of removing peanut proteins than Clorox does.

:shrug:

[Ilsa]

37. This is the worst peanut allergy I've heard of

My child had to eat his PBJ at lunch at the other end of the table from a child with allergies, but the kids didn't have to go through all of this. I'd put my foot down on washing my kids with Clorox, too. I have to wonder how much of this is excessive caution. I agree with not having foods brought in to the class though, due to risk.

[TwilightGardener]

38. Put the kid in a bubble and educate her at home. Sheesh.

[CLANG]

82. If she was in a bubble she may be able to go to regular school

Assuming the bubble is portable.

[Saphire]

40. Lets just say that somehow the little girl does come into contact with

peanuts and something does happen to her. Who going to blame/guilt of that??

No, sorry. If her allergy is this severe she needs to be home schooled. There are plenty of opportunities for her to socialize in more controlled settings.

[Nye Bevan]

43. I don't have a problem with the handwashing as that's a good habit anyway.

But making the kids rinse out their mouths and wipe their faces with Clorox is too much.

Handwashing, peanut-free tables at lunchtime, and banning kids from bringing in food containing peanuts, is *reasonable* accommodation as far as I am concerned. Forcible mouthwashing, and wiping faces with Clorox, goes beyond "reasonable".

[slackmaster]

44. Requiring kids to wash hands and practice basic, normal oral hygiene?!?!????!!!???????

Oh teh noes!

:nuke:

[Nye Bevan]

50. Requiring kids to wipe their faces with Clorox? Not so "basic and normal" (nt)

[slackmaster]

53. Yes, that part is excessive

The bleach is absolutely pointless and can harm skin. Soap and water would probably be more than adequate.

[CLANG]

84. Protest at the school

[Jamastiene]

45. Peanut sniffing dogs?

Peanut sniffing dogs? You have GOT to be shitting me! The idiocy has reached a crescendo. Every time I think I have heard it all, something idiotic like this comes along.

[hifiguy]

62. Gotta agree on that one. nt

[Angry Dragon]

46. ................

:popcorn:

[AmandaMae]

47. how is she going to function in society?

if she goes out in public there's a good chance she might encounter someone who has eaten peanuts eventually.

[Dappleganger]

52. That mother is a fool. If the allergy is that severe her child should remain

at home with a county-supplied tutor. Why would she risk her child's safety this way?

And wiping children's mouths with Clorox wipes is not safe!!

[dkofos]

56. A peanut allergy is just god's way of cruelly saying you're probably not going to survive childhood.

[nomb]

69. I don't think I'm comfortable with the callous glibness of this smart-ass quip.

I don't agree with the policy, but I also oppose the loathsome meanness and cruelty found coming from your fingers - the thought you expressed besmirches your character. It just does.

[cleanhippie]

90. If you believe in a god, are you saying YOUR god would not be a part of this?

Because by the definition of most people's god's, this is EXACTLY the kind of thing gods do.

But I understand the point your are making.

[CreekDog]

72. wow

:wow:

:wtf:

[Name removed]

115. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[WinkyDink]

60. Gates and Duncan would know what to do! Oh, wait; this kid would be a CHARTER REJECT.

[taught_me_patience]

64. I understand taking precautions, but this seems a bit too far

I wouldn't want someone wiping my childs face with clorox every day... that shit's poisonous.

[Cairycat]

66. The quote says only that parents CLAIM the kids' faces are wiped

with Clorox. Do we know for a fact that that's the case? The teachers in the school where I work would not do that.

I'm a lunch lady in an elementary school. Our district does not serve any foods made with peanuts or in factories where peanuts or tree nuts are processed, at the elementary level. We have a peanut-free table. Children in classes with peanut-allergic children are cautioned about brought-in food. These precautions are enough for the kids allergic to peanuts at my school.

At another elementary in town with a highly allergic child, similar to one described in the article. This child is often sick with other problems, but when she is there, there are higher levels of precautions taken, not quite to the extent described in the article.

I think the parents who complain about precautions infringing on their child's "right" to have PBJ at lunch are selfish assholes, plain and simple. It's a life-threatening, not minor, problem for these children and simple accommodations, even if they take a little time, are better than having a child going into anaphylactic shock or dying.

One day, my high-schooler wanted to sit at lunch with his friend who has a peanut allergy. My son didn't like the entree that day and would have gotten a peanut butter sandwich. He thought about L and got the entree he didn't like, no problem. Maybe having to take other people into consideration is educational for kids.

[proud2BlibKansan]

98. +1 thank you

Some of the posts in this thread are horrible.

[JanMichael]

67. The biggest problem is that the parents can only control this for so long

When the child goes to middle school, and has to change classes every forty five minutes, there is no way to enforce this; I can't even think about college.

This kid isn't going to have a normal life. It's sad.

[CreekDog]

73. i thought most of the severe peanut allergies become less severe over time

1) so as they get older, many as less at risk
2) as they get older, they can be more responsible for avoiding or dealing with the things that can harm them.

[madmom]

70. If she is that severely allergic does that mean that

all the other families of students have to start reading labels and not buy things containing or coming in contact with things in the peanut family? I really sympathize with them on this, but hardly think that is fair to everyone else if true. If she is that allergic then she is indeed in deep trouble because there are traces of this particular ingredient everywhere in the outside world.

[Lucian]

76. I agree with the outraged parents.

As much as I hate to say it.

Why should everyone accommodate one student's needs? I wouldn't want my kid's face wiped down with Clorox after every lunch period. I don't even use that toxic shit.

If the little girl has that severe of an allergy, then she should be home schooled FFS.

[truebrit71]

77. More faux outrage from the Daily Hate..I do wish people would stop linking to that right-wing rag...

..I only go there to see the bikini-clad celebrity pictures...:evilgrin:

[backscatter712]

80. A sign of the increasing influence of chemicals in our environment.

These sort of intense allergies didn't used to be common, but now there's a decent subset of the population that has deadly allergies to peanuts, almonds, and other things.

And autism too - it's not vaccines, it's exposure to various chemicals that are building in the environment that is responsible for the increase in cases of autism and autism-spectrum disorders.

[aikoaiko]

83. I thought there was an article years ago debunking the idea that mere presence of peanuts was fatal

and that ingestion was necessary for a severe or deadly reaction.

Even superficial contact had not been shown to cause fatal or near fatal reactions.


Edited to add: Here is an interview with the author of the article I mentioned above. http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=54559

It is rare to have a severe reaction without actual ingestion. Of course, this child could be a very rare anomaly that was not observed in the study. However, I think it is more likely the someone is exaggerating the danger.

[CoffeeCat]

85. We deal with this issue at my child's school...

My two daughters are in elementary school. There are several children who are severely
allergic to peanuts like the child in the OP.

In our school--there is no peanut butter allowed at all. Children are not allowed to take
peanut butter sandwiches for lunch. All birthday treats, treats for parties and other
food brought in--must be individually wrapped. Nothing homemade can be brought in to the
school. And of course, no treats with peanut butter.

It is challenging. I reallllly wish I could fix my kids a peanut butter sandwich every once in
a while. Turkey and roast beef get expensive.

However, my feeling is--that we should make concessions. This are human beings. They could die
if they are exposed to pb. Is it an inconvenience for me sometimes? Sure. However, my minor
inconveniences are not worth solving, if it means putting a child's life in jeopardy.

It is what it is. These children deserve to attend school, learn and be socialized. It's
not their fault. And we can accommodate them. So we should.

[HuckleB]

100. There's far more to the story, however.

Have Americans Gone Nuts Over Nut Allergies?
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1869095,00.html

Finally, the odds of having "several" children at a school with a life-threatening allergy are not worth betting on.

[revolution breeze]

86. My daughter was diagnosed with diabetes when she was 6.

She was extremely brittle, especially when she hit puberty. She was on a strict NO SUGAR diet for several years as even a small amount of processed sugar caused her blood sugar to spike. It was very very difficult dealing with food issues at school, and it was also very difficult teaching her to deal with these issues. We never asked others to make the concessions she was required to make and used class parties as a chance to teach the other children about why Erica ate different cake then they did. I feel for these parents but wonder if they are not asking a bit much from others.

[cleanhippie]

89. "intruding on her child's right to have peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch" - WTF?

I had no IDEA that PB&J's were a Right!

[LeftishBrit]

91. I am instantly suspicious of ANYTHING from the Daily Mail

They tend to sensationalize everything, especially anything health-related. And they get a lot wrong about local issues, let alone as far away as Florida.

There are some British primary schools that ban peanuts on the premises due to severely allergic children - in this context, it should be noted that (a) peanut butter is much less part of the staple diet here than in America; and (b) most primary schools serve school lunches. But I have never heard of a school requiring that kids rinse out their mouths before coming to class. (Handwashing is generally required as a general hygiene measure, especially before eating, whether there are allergic kids or not.) Nor have I come across 'peanut sniffing dogs'.

Peanuts allergies can indeed be life-threatening - more so than most food allergies. One of my adult friends has a severe peanut allergy, and once ended up being rushed to hospital in an ambulance with breathing difficulties, having eaten something which she thought hadn't been in contact with peanuts (but it had!). So it's important to take the condition seriously and label products carefully. But I haven't heard of a scenario quite like this one, and suspect that either the school is over-reacting for fear of being sued, or that the other parents are exaggerating the situation out of resentment of having to accommodate the child's allergies at all, or that the Daily Fail is making a lot of this up, as it usually does!

[KamaAina]

95. Story is also in local Fla. media

http://www.clickorlando.com/education/27139755/detail.html

and check out this little tidbit:

The condition affects only 2 percent of the population.

2 percent? That's one in every 50 kids. In other words, any decent-sized school is virtually certain to have at least one student with a peanut allergy. Yet no other, to my knowledge, employs peanut-sniffing dogs (!).

[KamaAina]

93. I suppose the kids could all bring cheese sandwiches instead

:hide:

[tammywammy]

99. heh n/t

[HuckleB]

101. Have Americans Gone Nuts Over Nut Allergies?

http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1869095,00.html

:shrug:

[HuckleB]

102. Peanut-allergic kids helped by desensitization

http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=peanut-allergic-kids-helped-by-dese-2009-02-20

A VERY small study, but it's not the only one. It doesn't appear that most allergic kids are going to die from a single molecule at the least.

[HuckleB]

108. Peanut allergies tackled in largest ever trial

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8527530.stm

[27inCali]

110. Kid needs to be in a school focused on serving special needs

the extremity of the case necessitates the kind of special attention that regular schools are not prepared to give.

it's irresponsible for the child's parents to place her in a regular school, they are risking her life and limiting the rights and options of others unnecessarily, that's not only wrong, it's stupid.

[sylvi]

111. I doubt they're being wiped down with bleach

Or even Clorox Wipes, which BTW, don't contain bleach.

Probably a facial wipe/baby wipe style of towlette in a dispenser similar to what Little Johnny sees Mama pulling her Clorox wipes from, and he ran and told Mama they were wiping him down with bathroom disinfectant.

[AsahinaKimi]

112. WHAT??? WHERE WAS THE BURNING IN

effigy of MR. PEANUT?

[B2G]

113. How does this child function

in the real world outside of her clasroom bubble? Does she ever go out?

[ZombieHorde]

114. This is a pretty interesting ethical/organizational situation.

I don't know what is right in this situation. Recommended.

[Zanzoobar]

117. Talk about reactions.

I had a cousin who went blind just watching a Charlie Brown special!

[Manifestor_of_Light]

118. Don't know why people don't take food allergies seriously.

I have a lot of food allergies. I spent my childhood saying "NO" to my bossy grandmother and mother, who tried to force me to eat things I either didn't like or found out later that I was allergic to, like tomatoes, bell peppers, and raw onions.

I also think that the hygiene hypothesis is bullshit. I inherited my allergies. I know my dad was tested and was allergic to tomatoes. I was raised in an unsealed house that was unbearably hot and humid in the summer, with no central air conditioning. Lots of dust and dog hair. We had a large hairy dog (rough collie) that was an indoor dog and had her own sofa to sleep on. I'm allergic to dogs and cats as well. I cannot be around smokers or I will contract bronchitis within 48 hours.

I also had a perpetually runny nose from my other allergies.

I started to figure this out when I was in high school and started eating pizza and I barfed it back up after an hour or so. There were quite a few things on it I could not handle.

[Maat]

120. I would never permit this.

I do not use bleach in my home; I do not want my child in contact with common bleach.

This is why I homeschool.

And, by the way, my kid has PLENTY of friends and 'socializes' quite a bit. It's just that, when she's studying, she's studying; when she's playing/socializing, she's playing/socializing.

[Zoeisright]

121. What's wrong with that?

A few minutes of rinsing out your mouth is hardly a hardship compared to dying of anaphylaxis. I only wish that Carrie Starkey could see what that looks like. What a whiner. Sheesh.