Peanut-free school debate moves to forum

Why should my child go to school in a peanut free school when my child is not allergic to peanuts and loves to eat peanuts. This infringes on my childs right to eat what they want to eat. I can not pack a school lunch for them unless it is peanut free. I don’t think schools should be telling children what they can eat. My school just passed to be peanut free school. This is not good at all. They have one child that is allergic to nuts and has been here for two years and she has never had reaction at school because the school does take precautions why do we have to be nut free.? Mad parent

Why should that one child risk their life so your child can “enjoy” a peanut butter sandwich? Will your child DIE if he doesn’t eat a PB&J until they get home? Can’t your child have it for breakfast and when he comes home from school? The child with the allergy can possibly DIE by touching it or smelling it, not just be eating it. It can take as little as 1/50 of a peanut to cause a reaction. Is it that much of a sacrafice? I think your child could surrive for 7 hours without eating peanuts. This would be a great lesson for you and your child to be good people and help others…you could save a life. Is someone’s life worth a peanut?

Hey, Mad Parent…would you like the child to have a reaction before going Peanut Free? Maybe the child should die first before a school decides to go peanut free. I would never wish this allergy upon anyone, but since you don’t have any compassion…maybe that’s the only way you could empathize. Talk to a child with this allergy….you need to hear it from their point of view.

The thing is…if your child eats a PB&J sandwich at lunch (and doesn’t COMPLETELY wash his hands of every last trace), then his touch will kill my little girl. I can’t even eat peanuts, because my kiss can kill her if I do. She’s severely allergic. Parents whose kids don’t have peanut allergies don’t understand how lethal it can be. Peanut allergies are unique because of the oils associated with peanuts. They are difficult to remove, even with household cleansers. And ordinary peanuts leave a dust in the air which my daughter reacts to as well.

It’s frustrating, but I support the peanut-free schools. I don’t want to fear for her life every day. It would take one kid with a little peanut butter on their hands. My little girl can react within five minutes, curl up in a corner and die before a teacher or supervisor notices she’s missing.

So yeah, peanut free schools will save her life. If that makes me selfish or lazy in some way, then I’m damn proud of it. I don’t have a whole lot of sympathy for parents who are pissed that their kids can’t eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich during the seven-hour school day. Walk a mile in our shoes and you’d think differently.

Another thing you might want to consider is that while your child eats that PB & J that they can’t “live” without and either makes another child sick or dead…what kind of impact on their lives will that have. I have found nothing but compassion from 90% of my peanut allergic sons classmates and let me tell you when something goes wrong…the tears are not his…so think about that when you worry about your civil rights.

You don’t Understand” may not understand that peanuts are not the only food that causes life threating reactions. If you force the schools to remove peanuts then other foods that cause Life threating reactions will need to be removed and the list can be very long. You can say peanuts is unique but if you remove one food to save a life you must be ready to remove them all(eggs, dairy, fish,etc..) and save all lives not just the peanut kids. Yes…kids have life threating reactions to other foods not just peanuts…and yes it can kill them. The scope of the problem is bigger then just peanuts. Peanut moms need to look at the BIG picture and realize that their children are bringing to school foods that could kill another child with egg allergy , dairy or some other strange allergy. So .. before you say that your childs life is more important then a peanut butter sandwich you better think about what it is you are really asking for…because your short sighted demanding view is leading us all done a path were schools will no longer be able to serve food.

I have one son who is severely allergic to nuts. I support peanut free tables and/or supervised lunches for children who have severe allergic reaction.

I DO NOT SUPPORT PEANUT FREE SCHOOLS.

I believe it’s impossible to control the actions of hundreds of children and their families to be diligent about the peanut ban. Instead, I find it a lot easier to control my child. I have taught him to be very aware of his surroundings. Never eat anybody else’s food. Always know where his epi-pen is and be prepared to use it.

To “You Don’t Understand”: What if a child eats a peanut product at home for breakfast and didn’t wash his/her hands then touches your child. That scenario could lead to death also, right? Are you goint to go for a peanut ban for the whole town next?

My son is also highly allergic to eggs and soy which is found in many food products. Should they be banned?

My other child is highly allergic to dairy, beef, pork and some seafoods. She doesn’t have many good lunch choices (PB&J is one of them). Should we ban them?

I don’t deny that peanut allergies exist and that they could be deadly but we should all be rational and think every possibility through before implementing outright bans.

My daughter will be starting a new school in September and I am fighting right now because she has a severe peanut allergy. She can’t even breathe peanuts or she will have an ashtma attack. Ingesting peanuts or peanut products will cause anaphylaxis. The school told me that in this economy, they can’t expect parents to stop sending peanut butter because it’s so cheap. Are they kidding? This is my daughter’s life we’re talking about and I am being lectured on the economy!!!! What should I do? Help!

“Terrified Mom”, when you are dealing with aireborne deadly allergies wheather it is peanuts , egg, dairy or whatever else….I believe doctors recommend homeschool. You can’t expect schools to remove all foods or do you?

To “PWC” I think the the main concern is when schools are not being as careful as they should be. That is what triggers parent with allergic children to push the issue of a peanut free school. During my experience and through a support group I have yet to hear about a parent whose doctor recommended homeschooling.

There are enough restrictions in these kids lives, do they really need to be isolated because of their allergies? All we ask as parents of allergic children is to have a little compassion and keep the nuts home.

To “Bananas” Again, the problem is not just nuts. Removing peanuts does nothing to solve the egg , dairy or other deadly allergy issues that exist in our schools. My argument is that if we remove one(nuts) we will eventually be asked to remove more. We remove nuts today tomorrow we will be asked to remove eggs then dairy then who knows what else. Soon schools will put their hands in the air and not allow food in our schools. Peanut moms need to look at the BIG picture, the allergy issue is not just about peanuts.

You ask for compassion, I ask that you look ahead into the future and see where systematically removing foods will lead us.

I don’t think the issue of peanut-free schools should even be a topic up for debate. It should be a non-issue. It’s ultimately a right to maintain one’s life (not die of allergies) and a right for parents and children to be reasonably assured that systems are in place to help students be safe at school. Those rights (important for us all) are ultimately more important than the right to eat whatever you want.

I grew up eating nuts, my parents working class, so PB&J sandwiches where convenient snacks.

As a first time mom, I looked forward to the opportunity to share my food habits and childhood memories with my son. However, his first bite of a PB&J sandwich sent him into anaphylactic shock. Guiltily, I replay that incident often in my head: When he took that first bite, I was singing to him. But then his lips started swelling. He started coughing. Flashing though my head, I had some recollection that a small percentage of children got nut allergies. Could this be happening to him?!!!? Swollen lips, swelling face, coughing. I wasn’t sure! I didn’t want this. NO! Please I didn’t want this. I called the nurse, and she said “Hang up! Call 911!”

A first time mom, home alone with my baby boy, I called 911 and in my head and in my heart I cried and prayed and cried: “Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God! My baby, my baby…. Not my baby! He’s swollen. It was just a little bit (I pleaded)! Please! Please! Please! (My prayer) Please God make him well…! Make him well!

The paramedics came. My son managed to throw up most of the peanut butter bite. He spent the rest of the night very sick. The doctor said, “He was lucky.” I was lucky. His first reaction hadn’t killed him.

I understand people who think they should have a right to eat whatever they want. I am fortunate that I’m not allergic to anything. I can eat whatever I want, but my son cannot.

As I’ve worked my way through careers and pursued higher education, staying at home has never been an option, even when I wanted it. For those of you who suggest “home-schooling” or isolating allergic children, I ask what you think of desegregation, public accommodations for people with disabilities, and all the other accommodations that are part of our “normal” lives today, including ones that “normal” people benefit from, such as regulation standards for food processing, choices in clothing and food sizes, having paved roads and street lights that organize traffic so that we don’t run into each other, etc., etc.? Our lives are full of accommodations that we make, little sacrifices (if you will), so that we can live peacefully, agreeably together, and co-exist, co-benefit, co-sacrifice for a better world. Further example: I don’t shit on my neighbor’s lawn. I don’t barbeque his dog when I’m hungry. I don’t play loud music after 10 pm. I don’t mow the lawn at midnight. I shower everyday and brush my teeth. These are all accommodations that I make so that I, and those around me can respectfully co-exist in the world.

My son is a social critter. He thrives on being around others. He enjoys meeting new people, enjoys having friendships, enjoys playing, enjoys learning, enjoys telling me about all the new things he experiences at school, enjoys eating, enjoys life.

Education is a public right. Just because some people can die from exposure to something others can eat with no problem, is not a reason to promote resentment, ostracization, isolation, or non-accommodation of those like my son.

Do I expect the world to stop eating nuts, because my son can’t? No! Even I still crave the nuts, though my love for my son is much stronger than any food.

Do I expect others to have the same resolve, especially if they don’t share the same commitment and love for someone with a nut allergy? No! But, I do expect others to be humane enough to realize that my son (who’s 2 years old) can’t read labels, doesn’t know that if he comes in contact with nuts he can die. Doesn’t even have the concept of “life, death, and God” down yet. And that my son is my life and the most important part of my world.

So in the interest of being humane, I expect places made for the public to accommodate my son as best they can. The easiest way for schools, is to create nut-free spaces (not ones of isolation), whether that’s a whole classroom, a cafeteria, or school.

Just like I expect drivers to brake if a pedestrian is crossing (an accommodation that drivers make for walkers) and just like I’d expect my neighbor to look before he backs his car out of the driveway (a slight sacrifice my neighbor makes to not kill someone walking buy). In exchange for these little accommodations, we’re able to co-exist in the world. I cannot expect everyone to love my son as I do, but I can expect (that they not intentionally have nuts around him at school). Just like all parents should be able to expect that naked people (cause it’s so easy to disrobe) won’t be allowed to freely harass their kids at school. And any reasonable person can expect that I would not ever do anything intentionally or negligently aimed at killing another person.

All of us should he humane and care enough to make accommodations within our reasonable ability, in order to preserve (and not take) life away from others.

Can I build a cocoon around my son? Maybe? But, then he wouldn’t learn how to accommodate himself to the world around him. Isolating him would not be right for him, for me, for our family, or ultimately for the world. Instead, I expect, I demand, and I will work for making our world one in which people are expected to lean toward their better nature and in so doing be a little less selfish, a little more aware, and a little more caring of others around them. This is the type of world I want to live in and the type of world I want for my son, a world in which humane capacity to care, learn, adjust and accommodate is more powerful than the selfish streak that says “damn you for being different, damn you for inconveniencing me” and instead opens up spaces and opportunities for life, mutual respect, and community.

LovingMom you still have not addressed the issue of outside of school activities. Sure I don’t drive my car into people, but I still drive my car even though there is a possibility I might lose control and kill someone. So should we not drive cars at all? Should peanuts be stricken from the earth? I am asking for common sense. I agree your kid deserves special attention. According to Darwin it is just an example of genes that should be weeded out. Do I believe that? No. I think your son deserves a life. But as for him being social and loving to be around others. I severely hope that he does not befriend my child. Because they will not be allowed to see each other outside of school because I do not want my son having to watch his every step because he was born stronger. Also I hope your son does not like comic books as well, as he would not be allowed into my store. I hope that you reaalize by being so outrageous in asking others for “compassion” because if what some of the parents are saying about these children dying if smelling peanuts is true, I will not have that on my conscience. So I will not give up peanuts in my life. And I do not want to kill your child. So I will stay away from them and they will stay away from me and my family.

PWC the difference between peanut/tree nut allerigies from the other foods mentioned is that you can die from a peanut/tree nut allery without ingesting it. The others you have to eat/drink, so I can eat a dozen eggs in front of a kid with and egg allergy and he won’t have to worry. Eventually my daughter will be old enough to where she’ll be able to handle an allergic reaction herself, but in elementary school, yeah, I totally support a peanut ban.

Believe it or not, giving up peanuts isn’t that hard.