How Teachers Can Help with Food Allergies

January 23rd, 2009 By: Diane Trim in Articles, School Safety, Special Needs

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According to a 2007 study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, one in 25 students has a food allergy; that’s up 20 percent from one in 30 students in a 1997 study.

Students with food allergies can have reactions to the allergen that range from tingling, itching and hives to anaphylaxis, a serious and rapid reaction that can lead to death.

The problem for secondary school teachers is that food allergies can reach beyond the cafeteria and into the classroom. ABC News reported that a girl with a peanut allergy had a severe reaction in the classroom when a boy two rows away opened a peanut butter cup. The smell caused the girl’s anaphylaxis and she went to the emergency department with breathing problems.

Anne Munoz-Furlong, former chief executive and founder of the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN), said that student’s often don’t understand that food allergies are real. “It’s not a food preference,” she said. “Students need to understand that they can really hurt their classmates.”

Food allergies in the classroom. The CDC study found that the number of hospitalizations for children with food allergy reactions is an average of 9,537 each year, which is nearly double the average for the years 2001-2003.

We don’t know why food allergies are on the rise, Munoz-Furlong said, but we’re not the only country where this is occurring.

The concern for teachers is that allergic reactions to foods are more likely to happen in the classroom than during lunch.

“Everyone worries about the cafeteria,” Munoz-Furlong said. “The biggest risk is food in the classroom. A study done about allergic reactions in schools found that food was used in classroom lessons, celebrations, and holiday parties. Teachers should ask parents to become involved and put parents of allergic students in charge of arranging events like these.”

Teaching about food allergies. Forming partnerships between parents of allergic students and teachers is an important way to protect the allergic student. But teachers can also educate students about food allergies.

FAAN has resources for teachers who want to raise food allergy awareness in their classrooms at www.foodallergy.org. Resources include a short PowerPoint presentation with the facts about food allergies and a fact-or-fiction quiz.

The FAAN Website also recommends that teachers become familiar with school emergency procedures, know how to recognize an allergic reaction, and understand what to do when a reaction occurs. The site recommends alerting substitute teachers about food allergic students and avoiding using food in lesson planning.

Food bullying. Despite a teacher’s best efforts, students with food allergies can experience reactions and become a target for food bullying from their peers. In April of 2008, a Kentucky middle school student faced felony charges for placing peanut butter cookie crumbs in the lunch box of a food allergic student. The allergic student did not suffer a reaction.

“Food bullying is more common than we’d like to believe, especially in middle school where there’s so much peer pressure,” Munoz-Furlong said. “The graphic descriptions of allergic reactions can make food allergic students a target. Instead of calling attention to food bullying, the best plan is for teachers to explain that there is a no bully policy in the school.”

Teachers and schools can begin PAL (Protect a Life from Food Allergies) programs in their classrooms and schools to encourage students to keep their classmates safe. Free downloadable posters and brochures are available from FAAN at http://www.foodallergy.org/pal.html.

“We’re all in this together,” Munoz-Furlong said. “Kids need to help other kids. Teachers need to educate. If you don’t already have a child with a food allergy in class, you will.”

Tags: bullying, food allergies, safety

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