Are Food Allergies Out of Control?
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From our friends at Momversation.com
Sometimes you feel like a nut. Sometimes you don’t. And sometimes a nut can make your face swell up like a balloon. Yep, today on Momversation, we’re talking about food allergies, particularly peanut allergies, and how they have changed the landscape of the school cafeteria. No longer are PB&Js the staple of an elementary school lunch; in fact, they are banned in a lot of districts. Has the world gone mad? What will they ban next? Giyen Kim of Bacon Is My Enemy asks, “Have food allergies gotten out of hand?”
Do you think entire schools should ban peanuts? Do you know any kids with a severe peanut allergy? Did you know anyone with that type of allergy when you were growing up? Or do you think the banning of peanuts is just reactionary… and maybe a little silly?
Have Food Allergies Gotten Out of Control?
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Comment by Heather on Jan 06 2010 02:38:21:
Please don’t be naive. Peanut allergies are very serious and are becoming more and more common. My son has a peanut allergy and went into anaphylactic shock when he was 2 years old..and nearly died. We were fortune enough to make it to the ER before he went into shock (I’m talking seconds here people). Each reaction he has will be worse than the last so the fact that he went into shock the first time he tried peanuts (they were on a donut) his next reaction will be quicker and more severe. We have no family history of allergies & were uneducated ourselves about them. I can understand why some people may feel frustrated with the rule but when you understand the extreme nature of a peanut allergy I would expect anyone to accept the rule.
Removing peanuts from schools is the safest way my child can go to school – and really for children as well. I worry about my son getting picked on or even some uneducated bully sneaking it into his food not fully understanding the seriousness of his allergies (at which time I would have no problem taking legal action on the bully & his family). Teachers can’t always be watching over every child every moment. True, my son will need to be responsible & ask what’s in food & carry his epipens – but still, to remove peanuts from school isn’t THAT big of a deal. Believe it or not, there are other things to eat (I lived off of PB myself prior to our discovery of my son’s allergy and have learned about many other wonderful foods grocery stores carry).
I would compare allowing children to eat peanut butter in schools to letting them bring a loaded gun to school. That’s more responsibility than a child can handle.