Peanut Allergy in School Hits the Big Press

This past weekend, the major news sources picked up a story that I’ve had my eye on for several weeks. Parents at a Florida elementary school are protesting guidelines put in place to protect a peanut-allergic first grader. These parents say the imposed measures take away the rights of their children and that the school is taking unnecessary measures to protect just one student.

Many of the parents have called for the child to be "homeschooled if her allergies are so life threatening.”

As a mom, my heart breaks for this family and a little 6-year-old girl who have been thrown into the national spotlight. As a mom of a child with multiple food allergies, my brain finds it difficult to understand the lack of compassion on the part of the parents in the school.

I have ridden in an ambulance with my child as he suffered an allergic reaction to something he ate.

It’s terrifying.

From the moment of the diagnosis, life for the entire family changes. In an instant we had to think about every food we brought into our home. Meals and snacks had to be reconstructed from scratch--literally. Travel and holidays were fraught with unknowns and dangers. We struggled and we figured it, out and eventually those early years at home became more manageable.

Looking back, those challenges seemed easy compared to the terror of sending my food-allergic child off to school for the first time. I worried that a high schooler on the early bus run had eaten a peanut butter cup and wiped his hands on the seat, leaving behind peanut protein. I had anxiety about kids eating cheese curls at lunch and getting orange cheese powder (dairy protein to me) all over the computer keyboard before my child used it.

It felt like there was danger lurking everywhere.

Food allergy now falls under the Americans with Disabilities Act. We have a 504 plan in place and a supportive school environment to back it up. After 10 years of dealing with food allergies, we’ve become more comfortable with the day-to-day management, while my child has assumed more independence with each passing year.

So, what are the "unnecessary measures" parents are protesting in the Florida school? Things like hand washing, wiping down desks, no food at school holiday celebrations and a school walk-through by a peanut-sniffing dog seeking hidden peanut protein.

Unreasonable? Come on, we’re talking about the safety of a child.

Here’s what I have to say to the protesting parents in Florida: “Allow this family some flexibility as they figure out how to manage their little girl’s peanut allergy in school.”

Positive actions on the part of the adults can show these elementary school children what it means to be kind and compassionate.

Isn’t that one of the best lessons our kids can learn?