Update on Florida School and Peanut Allergy Regulations

Despite the protests and what I, and many, have considered to be harassment and bullying of a peanut-allergic first grader by her classmates parents, a Florida school is standing behind their peanut allergy regulations. These regulations set in place to protect the peanut allergic girl require students at Edgewater Elementary to wash their hands and take a drink of water before entering the classroom and after lunch because of the severity of the girls allergy. The school has also banned all peanut products, eliminated snacks and outside food from being brought into the classroom, and makes an effort to wipe down desks with Clorox wipes periodically throughout the day. Unfortunately some of these regulations have been misconstrued by both the media and other parents at the school.

The following is the list of accommodations set in place by the school that the Bailey's are aware of. These where given to me by Tracey Bailey, the girls mother, via Food Allergy Families Facebook page.
1. No nut products in classroom
2. Kids wash their hands and wipe face off with water or take a drink from water fountain but not rinse mouth out or wipe with Clorox wipe. In the morning & after lunch
3. our child does not eat in the cafeteria.
4. She carries an epi pen on her at all times
5. She is granted access to the clinic whenever she is in need of medical assistance.
6. She is not allowed in cafeteria without one of her parents present.
7. No faculty will give her food without prior permission from parents.
8. Her classroom is nut free

According to Tracey, "This is it! So EVERYTHING else is either a lie or we did not know it was happening!"

I have to say I was very shocked and confused by allergist Dr. Scott Sicherer's comments in yesterdays article by Fox News saying, “There are many guidelines on how to manage food allergies in schools… things like no food sharing. There are plenty of relatively simple things the school could put in place that aren’t burdensome.” What? Does this mean he does not agree with the regulations in place? The smell of peanuts alone can trigger a deadly reaction for this girl. I have to disagree that something as simple as no food sharing would be enough to keep her safe.

The fact that these parents are taking an issue with the loss of education their kids are receiving from this makes me laugh. It has been stated that 30 minutes of classtime is wasted in hand washing and a sip of water. I find it hard to believe that these 30 minutes are going to take away any sort of academic achievement from these children. Come on people, its not Harvard Law School, its the FIRST GRADE! Is this girls life not worth a mere 30 minutes of their time? Judging by their parents, I would be willing to bet that some of these kids could use this experience as a lesson in humanity by teaching them that they are not the center of the universe but rather a part of it.

I applaud the school in their decision to continue their efforts in keeping the peanut-allergic girl safe stating that, “It may seem like an inconvenience but this student registered her disability at the beginning of the school year and we have to do these things to give her a safe learning environment.”

Read also, "Finding an Allergy Aware school" and "10 School Safety Tips for Children With Food Allergies: Insight From Food Allergy Parents, Experts & Advocates"