Special Needs Allergies
For the parents of the roughly six million American children living with food allergies, going to school means another, more daunting task: keeping their children safe at school from the potentially life-threatening allergic reactions that can arise from their allergies.
As far as these parents and children are concerned, attending school is more than learning about math and science while fostering relationships with their school mates. School can be a battlefield, where each new school day, each class trip and each birthday party can present potentially life-threatening challenges in the form of allergic reactions to peanuts, tree nuts, milk, cheese and gluten, among the wide array of food allergies.
That threat is real for parents like Tara Spitzer-List, a Gates resident who has two sons with food allergies. Ethan, 6 (turning 7 in September), is allergic to peanuts, milk/dairy and shellfish while Joshua, 4, is allergic to tree nuts. Ethan used to be allergic to eggs, but has since outgrown that allergy. However, his peanut allergy is “severe,” according to his mom, who discovered that Ethan had food allergies when he was nine months old, and that Josh became allergic when he was 2 years old and heading into pre-school.
While the school is supposed to be a learning environment, it can also be a hazardous environment for parents and children living with food allergies. Spitzer-List says she makes Ethan’s lunch every day because “it’s just too difficult for the school to provide him with a safe, tasty lunch” given his allergies. “It was hard in the beginning when we first found out, especially for me because I like to cook for my family and milk, cheese and creamy kinds of foods were some of my favorites to cook. Not anymore,” says Spitzer-List, who added that it seems like more and more children are growing up with food allergies compared to when she was a child. “My advice for other parents (when it comes to kids with food allergies) is just to ask about what kinds of food they can eat instead of being so quick to say ‘I don’t have anything you can eat.’ Food labeling is getting much better in this country, but some people still don’t realize there can be hidden ingredients or a small amount of nuts in many common foods that could send Ethan into a bad reaction.”
An adverse reaction to food can cause a child to experience any number of the following symptoms, depending on the type and severity of the allergy: breaking out in hives or rashes, vomiting, swelling of the face and even difficulty breathing. And these food-related reactions don’t just affect the children living with these allergies. Nowadays, most schools are highly aware of the dangers presented by food allergies, with separate nut-free, dairy-free and gluten-free tables and rooms being established to allow all children the chance to thrive in school without fear of an anaphylactic reaction. Peanuts and tree nuts are among the most likely culprits when it comes to severe allergic reactions, but allergens such as fish, milk and gluten can also cause reactions in children. One of the best ways to prevent reactions is simple: wash your hands, especially after snacking on nuts. That simple measure can help prevent the spread of peanuts and associated proteins that can linger behind and potentially cause an adverse reaction in an unsuspecting child.
Jacqueline Griebel, the head of school for the Webster Montessori School that offers both school and wraparound (pre- and post-school care) to 110 students, says educating the parents on the dos and don'ts of food safety is essential for maintaining a safe learning environment. Each of the students in the school is responsible for bringing in his or her own lunches, so if a parent isn’t careful, she could accidentally create a situation where another child’s safety and welfare could be endangered.
For one week each year at the Webster Montessori School, each child is responsible for providing a snack for their classmates, and to help parents with this process, the school will circulate a detailed shopping list that highlights what foods are safe and acceptable for consumption, and which foods could cause problems. “The kids with food allergies are fairly aware of their allergies, and they love to help each other out when it comes to educating their classmates on what types of food can and cannot be around,” says Griebel, who helps oversee the training for the school’s 20 employees. “It makes children really think about themselves, their bodies and what types of food they are consuming. But at the end of the day, we need to rely on the adults in the school and also the parents to know the various dietary restrictions and make sure a safe environment is maintained.”
Aidan Beaudrie was just 11 months old when a day care staff member fed him a peanut butter sandwich. Almost immediately after consuming the peanut butter, Aidan suffered an allergic reaction, his face swollen and puffy. Luckily, Aidan didn’t go into anaphylactic shock, and when the day care notified his mother, Patty, of the incident, she instantly knew what to do. Aidan was given some liquid Benadryl and soon after, the swelling and puffiness subsided. Aidan, now 13 and an eighth grader at the Hope Hall School in Rochester, lives with both a peanut and a tree nut allergy. Patty says her son suffers with the “highest level” peanut allergy and carries his EpiPen around with him at all times. An EpiPen contains a calculated dose of epinephrine by injection, and is most commonly used for the treatment of acute allergic reactions to avoid or treat the onset of anaphylactic shock.
Initially, Patty says some school officials were concerned about giving a needle to a child, but since an EpiPen usually only buys the person 20 minutes, Aidan carries two EpiPen’s on him at all times to cover himself in case of an adverse reaction. “This is a life or death situation and the biggest thing is to make the parents feel comfortable that their child is safe while at school,” says Patty, whose son wears a Medic Alert bracelet and who has been well-trained on identifying symptoms that could lead to an outbreak. “When Aidan goes to a friend’s birthday party, we will often provide his own cake or ice cream so he can celebrate with his friends, says Patty. "You want a special needs child (like Aidan) to be like every other child, and having food allergies can definitely make a child feel separated from the other children. This is a life-saving battle and Aidan’s life depends on handling this properly.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study conducted in 2008, there was a marked 18 percent spike in food allergy cases between 1997 and 2007. The study revealed that the number of people living with food allergies is also on the rise, but researchers haven’t been able to figure out why the numbers are climbing. For Rachel Chalmers, the associate executive director of the Stepping Stones Learning Center in Rochester, there is no such thing as too much communication when it comes to accommodating children with food allergies. Serving more than 500 students between the ages of 2 and 21, Stepping Stones employs 150 staff and has a full-time school nurse on campus for any and all medical emergencies, including allergic reactions to foods. Families enrolling their children in the center are encouraged to notify the school of any pre-existing medical conditions. Whenever a child with a food allergy is signed up, the nurse will then notify that child’s teacher of the situation, carefully explaining the sensitivity of the allergy. A second school administrator then double-checks and makes sure that everyone involved knows there is a child with a food allergy in their classroom and where to locate the pertinent emergency medication that could save that child’s life.
“We rely on the information provided by our families, and we make sure our staff is trained on administering an EpiPen in case of accidental exposure,” says Chalmers. This year, Chalmers and her staff have, among the many children with food allergies, a set of twins who are allergic to seven or eight different food items, Chalmers says. The school has both a peanut-free and a tree nut-free room set up to accommodate children with those allergies. “All our staff know what to do in case of an emergency. Since I started here, we’ve definitely seen more cases of food allergies. It’s always been a serious threat but we try our best to not let that impact how a child engages in our activities while remaining aware of how life-threatening a situation can be.”
John Boccacino is a freelance writer and monthly contributor to Rochester Area & Genesee Valley Parent Magazine. He is currently the Director of Sports Information for Keuka College. He lives in Webster, NY.
Did you know...
According to the most recent data provided by Food Allergy Research and Education (FARE), approximately 15 million Americans live with food allergies, with 1 in every 13 children being affected by food allergies. That means, roughly two children in every classroom in this country come to school with a pre-existing food allergy. Forty percent of children with a food allergy have already endured a life-threatening or severe allergic reaction. Every three minutes, someone in the US visits an emergency room because of a food-related reaction.
