(no subject)

[rootofnewt]

boy is sick today. he seems to have some kind of head nastiness. i'm going to fetch him some nyquil after the doctor's office opens back up (I need a refill for my Nexium called in, may as well pick up both at the same time).

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This irritates me. Peanut allergy (PA) can be very, very severe. I hate it when parents get so narrow-minded they can't see that this is a life or death situation for that kindergartener. He has a right to an education. These parents who are bitching about the hire of a nurse (which the principal swears is funded by a different budget) don't seem to realize that if the school cannot accomodate the child's disability in-house, they will have to pay for private at-home instruction, which is quite expensive.

another article, which the mother claims uses inaccurate facts. she didn't elaborate.

I know that PB is a cheap option and it's a favorite all over the US. We have to acknowlege, however, that childhood PA can be life-threatening in minute amounts. Some kids react to airborne particles (also known as "smell"), some react to residue on playground equipment. Some react to touch, some have to eat it. If a child reacts severely to minute amounts, zie must be protected. These children have 504 plans (ADA accomodations) to ensure their safety.

There are other options. On a peanut allergy board I frequent, a vegan mother trolled (she really was) and bitched about not being able to send nuts or soy with her child to school and wanted to know just how he was going to get protein. I gave her *several* vegan peanut-free and soy-free product lines and she continued to complain! If her child had the life-threatening condition, she'd be just as vocal.

Comments

*hugs*

[allicat40.livejournal.com]

I hear you *smirk* these people sometimes need a clue by four upside the head. I get this at work. Trying to book donors to donate blood. They whine and bitch *why should i give blood anyways?* Umm because you never know you dimwit you or someone you know may need a transfusion because of an accident or life threatening illness.. gah .. and i bite my tongue- i don't say anything but i'd love to. Especially after watching my own mother receive almost 200 transfusions in a bit over a two year period! *head banging against wall* ahh well some people never learn .. they like to hear the sound of their own voice droning on i think.. *hugs and snugs

[elnigma.livejournal.com]

The school nurse idea won't help with peanut allergy. The kid has to learn how to self-medicate. And yes, a 5 year old can learn how to use an inhaler by themselves. In the 10 minutes I takes to go to the school nurse's office, a kid could stop breathing, which is why the county I live in has an exception to the "no carrying medicine" rule for severely allergic students.
I got to admit forbidding all the other children PB&J because of one child is a bit severe, if not disturbing in a way. Sometimes a mother DOES go too far, and sometimes if they are that worried about it, they do have to look into private schooling. My cousin has peanut allergy, btw. and eating it can be toxic, too much inhaling of peanut caused dust (which is unlikely to come off from peanut butter in some other child's sandwich) can hurt her, and cause her to need her spray. But this mother seems to be over-reacting and probably causing her kid ostracization, imho.

[krasota.livejournal.com]

No, this is a nurse aid who is with him *at all times*.

In school districts which refuse to allow meds to be *on* the child or zir teacher, an aid or nurse-aid is hired to carry the meds and be with the child at all times. She's not just carrying an inhaler, she's carrying injectable epinephrine, which would be required if the child begins to suffer a reaction.

If a private school receives no federal funds, they are not required to accomodate disabilities, so many private schools *won't* accept students with peanut allergies.

I don't think it's going to far. I think all children are entitled to a public education.

I have a peanut allergy, too. Mine isn't as severe as most childhood-onset can be, but my soy and latex allergies *are*. If you can *smell* something, microscopic particles of that substance are present in the air. I can certainly smell peanut butter when someone else is eating it. There are children who can *die* from that minute exposure. They may be rare, but they exist. A school cafeteria typically has a lot more pb in it than a standard situation, so it makes sense to limit peanuts.

Some schools choose to do less--they have peanut or peanut-free tables, which are cleaned with different buckets, etc. It all depends on the needs of the child.

[mery-bast.livejournal.com]

A peanut-free table seems like a reasonable option that I would support if I had kids in that age range but barring the other children from PB&J sandwiches does seem restrictive and a burden to the parents of the other children. I wonder if this mother has considered home-schooling? A lot of families prefer that and it might be the best option for her child.

[krasota.livejournal.com]

I'm just not so sure that I can conceive why a burden to parents would carry anywhere near as much consideration as a child's life.

Some families do prefer home-schooling, but lots of families don't, for various reasons. It's all moot, though, as the child lives in the US, where zie is *entitled* to a public education.

[mery-bast.livejournal.com]

I can, at the very least, understand why they might feel it's a burden. If I had several young children, worked long hours at a menial job, and then felt like the school was commanding that I had to spend yet more money and time on what I pack for my children's lunch, I'd probably feel put upon as well. If it's just one classroom worth of kids in this instance, maybe the school could provide acceptable lunches for all of the children (which would accommodate the child with allergies as well as the parents of the other children)?

[elnigma.livejournal.com]

This sounds like more that the school is putting its rules above common sense, which would have the kid able to bring their own medicine, and be able to use it. They are being completely horrid by forbidding the child and teacher from having them.
To make things much less complicated regarding the shots, ephinedrine is available in an easy shot device. It comes in a case.. and its sort of like they give diabetics. Some kids have those around with them who are allergic to bees, elementary school teachers got a case to hold spare ones labelled for the students, and taught how to use them.

I don't like the "can't carry medicine" rule even as much as it is around, even though it exempts for severe allergies - teenagers aren't allowed to take Tylenol with them to school, AND can't get any from the school nurse, and it doesn't matter if parents say its okay or not. So a kid with growing pains, menstrual craps, whatever hasn't the mercy afforded every grown-up on the planet. Actually cause otherwise I'd have been unable to study in school sometimes without it, and cause I held that same opinion in high school and was willing to take the risk I always carried Tylenol with me in my purse.

The peanut free tables is an excellent idea, it'll probably cut down on trouble for most of the problems. People have to be somewhat near a person to smell them eat. What a cool idea, and one that teaches understanding.

Nothing can make it perfect, since kids can come to school who ate peanuts at breakfast or break, or might have some peanut butter on their clothes, etc. I feel sorry some kids are so sensitive, I hope children that much in danger are getting allergy shots to build their immunity. (It doesn't work right away, but leads to a better immunity eventually)

[krasota.livejournal.com]

I have an Epi-pen. Several, actually. Schools sometimes insist that they won't allow anyone but a nurse to administer it, due to liability. Sometimes they won't allow anyone but the child to use it, which becomes difficult if the child enters shock.

There is no conclusive proof that immunotherapy improves food allergy reactions. On the contrary, complete avoidance can help children outgrow many food allergies... I forget what the rates are for PA--something like 20% with *complete* avoidance. There is very little chance immunity with anaphylactic reactions like peanut--reactions actually worsen. Furthermore, immunotherapy is never a 100% cure--it actually made my environmental allergies *worse*.

[elnigma.livejournal.com]

I thought that there was a study that childhood immunotherapy improved the chances of lighter allergies in adulthood.

[elnigma.livejournal.com]

Sigh. I am likely my local county's handling of things more each time I read.. the child can administer to his/herself, if needed. Permissions can be signed for a teacher in the case of an emergency to administer it to a child, if they become incapacitated and they need it.
I've gone through immunotherapy, and my experience was that yes, it can make things worse for awhile, then though the injections become more potent, the reactions to them kind of plateau'd and didn't get worse. As for whether they worked, I think it really helped in the long run - I have two cats, a dog, a house with too many old books, and I can breathe, and I wasn't like that as a kid at all. But injections are done differently now then when I was little for the convenience of doctors. I used to be given shots 3 times a week, now they do them every other week, use a high dose, and then watch to see if the patient doesn't fall over ill. Eewww. In fact I'm not sure that's even the proper technique for even the THEORY of immunotherapy, and might be just one big joke, and if so, it'd be no wonder if it wouldn't work. I wasn't in danger with every shot cause it was a more frequent and more gradually increased technique then that.
Yet they will never go back to giving frequent shots, cause the only way my mother kept up with 3 kids getting 3 shots a week was they taught her how to fill needles and administer them to us, then carefully break the needle parts off and bring the useds back to the physician. They'd NEVER let people take home needles today, let alone the rest - they'd be assuming someone might sell them to drug dealers or something.

[krasota.livejournal.com]

my shots were like yours, only mom didn't administer them. and some allergists *do* still allow folks to administer their own shots after a few years. as for syringes--my allergist in indiana gave me all the syringes i wanted when my university health center refused to provide the right type of syringe (sub-c, rather than tuberculin) for my shots.

immunotherapy made me worse, period. my allergist tried a lot of different things and finally decided, after several years, that i was extremely atopic and immunotherapy was doing me more harm than good. many of the PA children are like that. immunotheraphy doesn't work for everyone and attempting to do it with peanuts is very, very dangerous.

there are vaccines in the works which would prevent the IgE production/reaction/something, but they're still in trials in the US.

[elnigma.livejournal.com]

*Nods*
I'm very fortunate that all my allergies are airborne. Which could be very different.

[ismene.livejournal.com]

A 5-yr-old can learn to use an inhaler, yes. However, I believe it's completely unreasonable to expect a 5-yr-old to successfully be able to give zirself an injection, especially while going into anaphylactic shock.

[queensheba.livejournal.com]

I guess my only question is this - is this allergy all of a sudden more prominent than it used to be, or do we only now know what it is, and kids have been reacting to peanuts all along? I'm not trying to make light of it; I know it's really important to some people and I'm sure it would be to me as well if someone close to me had a similar allergy.

[hellsop.livejournal.com]

My guess is that previously, the highly allergic children simply died from the reaction in very early exposure, and never lived long enough to reach kindergarten.

[elnigma.livejournal.com]

My cousin is 34.. it was known to be possibly deadly back then too. She went to the hospital several times for accidental exposure. It definately has become more well known, its still a very rare situation. Nobody would mock her for it now, and they had when she was young, rather cruelly. (I wonder what they think about their teasing her about it now?)

[krasota.livejournal.com]

Researchers aren't sure whether PA is on the increase or whether diagnosis rates have become more accurate, which helps ensure survival.

[hellsop.livejournal.com]

On a peanut allergy board I frequent, a vegan mother trolled (she really was) and bitched about not being able to send nuts or soy with her child to school and wanted to know just how he was going to get protein.

Do even children need large amounts of protein at every meal? I'm sure that feeding the sprog the peanut butter in the evening would do quite as well from a health perspective. For that matter, if she's that hyped on protein, she can stop inflicting her personal dietary regimen on her kid and send a turkey sandwich along instead.

[red-frog.livejournal.com]

Or serve tortillas and beans.

[sabethea.livejournal.com]

i'm with you.

i *don't like* nuts.

fair enough.

my cousin is hugely allergic - hospitalised on many occasions. there IS a difference.

bloody hell, it can KILL people.

[daq42.livejournal.com]

Just to be annoying.
Peanut allergy (or any food alergy for that matter) is generally caused by an imbalance or missing protein or enzyme in a person's system.
While the causes can vary, more research in the fields of gene therapy and other stuff has been done in the last few years. Here's a link.
http://www2.us.elsevierhealth.com/scripts/om.dll/serve?retrieve=/pii/S0016508500215151&

I suck at LJ posting crap, so you'll have to cut and paste that one.
That and I'm lazy right now, so sue me.

If you read through that article you'll see they are pretty much testing immunotherapy, but research is showing other methods to be effective (gene replacement therapy and mutogen reactive research, all stupid shit, mostly in the theoretic stages right now, thank you FDA).

I would guess that the majority of allergies can be better treated, but the fact that there are genetic anomolies that cause the problems would lead some radical control freaks to institute rather arcane practices such as birthing licenses and stuff beyond just checking to make sure you aren't gonna have kids with your blood relatives. Eh, that was a rambling thought.

No, I don't think we should institute birth licenses. Even if Gataca was a cool movie.

So anyway.

There are days where it would be cheaper to just shoot people than to care about them, deficiencies and all. Remember that nugget of wisdom for a rainy day.

I like Krasota's posts. Everyone needs an advocate. Especially those with illnesses and those too young to stand up for themselves.

I'm just posting random thoughs now.
Forgive me, long day at work.

Foo.

Oh, and epinipherin is nasty in large doses. Be careful you don't damage your system with over use for minor irritations. Then again, itching all over your body is not a minor irritation. Damn fleas...

[jkatj.livejournal.com]

Oh, the irony. Sitting here reading this while shoving peanut butter in my face.

I find myself on both sides of this issue. I think with more information I'd end up fully on the side of the PA family, but with the amount I've read, I can't say for sure.

I guess the thing leaning me away from an peanut-free zone is remembering grade school. If someone would have told me in first grade that I needed to learn to make something else for myself for lunch, I might have cracked. Things were so horrible at home, and I was getting myself up and making my own lunch every day, and you can just see in pictures of me that I had just about had it. I prob'ly would have just stopped eating if peanut butter was taken away.

But it's hard to say that should overshadow the actual life of another child. I can't say that. Nobody should say that.

But, god, life was hard enough. :P