School Allergies

I am in the same situation. My girl is in a peanut free school which is great seeing I have a little with a peanut allergy. It is hard when it comes to snacks. HOw about cereal bars, bagels. Are milk products banned from the school?

you could try pudding cups,crackers,oatmeal or sugar cookies

Hi,J., Do you like cooking? you could try homemade banana bread or oatmeal cookies with raisins instead of nuts. Baking them yourself, you can use less sugar and you know what's in there. Cooking time can be fun too : my daughter, 30 months, loves to cook with me, it takes more time but keeps her occupied and gives us a special time together.Martine K

We have the same problem at our school. I send in many different things for my son...bagel with cream cheese (or jelly), carrot sticks with some ranch dressing to dip in, celery sticks with dressing to dip in, organic smooshed fruit(found in the natural food section of the grocery store), organic fruit and cereal bars and more. Yes, I buy organic foods. It does sometimes cost a little more but the benefits of not having all those chemicals in my kids is worth it. Hydrogentated stuff is TRANS FAT...fyi! I hope this helps you!

L.

I hear you about it being tough! A word about the peanut allergy, though. The rule I think is because some kids are SO allergic that they can have a reaction if one child eats the food, touches something with the peanut oil still on his hands, and the allergic child touches it later. It's pretty scary. However, I don't agree with their stand on milk products- unless they have a severe allergy, I can't seem to understand why they would ban such an essential type of food for so many kids.

This could be a great time to explore more exotic and different foods with your child, though. Make your own chips by baking whole wheat pita bread and cutting into triangles, and serve with salsa. Try "veggie" cheeses (made from soy and tofu) with crackers. Make banana bread, pumpkin muffins, seasonal apple and zucchini breads, and other quick breads. Yogurt comes in soy varieties as well, but I don't know how closely you'd be pushing the line with that one! Oatmeal raisin cookies are a great snack, too, with Jello. I imagine it's a challenge! But also, who says snacks can't be a small meal? Got a bit of leftovers? Or veggies from last night's dinner with dip? Or some rice and beans with a little Italian dressing? I think it's a great time to get really creative. So much luck to you!!
Blessings
H.

I am really surprised that there are restrictions like those on first grade children. Usually it is the job of the school to provide a safe area for the allergic child to eat safely. I just wonder how the school can trust ALL the parents will know exactly how to conform to this food plan safely and without putting the child with allergies at risk of being exposed to something potentially harmful to a child.
It seems to me that the school is putting what they should be doing onto you. I think that the allergic child should be sepperated for his own safety and the other children should be allowed to eat their own food. I know that this is a "perfect workd" solution, so if the school will not do anything than maybe the mother of the allergic child would be the best candidate for helping all the other mothers pack safe snacks. Maybe you could ask her for help with this.
Good luck, it is scary enough just trying to keep our own children safe and now you have been giving the burden of another.

Hi J.,

Have you tried the Kraft foods website - www.kraftfoods.com? They have loads of family and kid friendly recipes. The Food Network website (www.foodnetwork.com) also has a back to school section, too.

Best wishes with your family.
Take care,

D.

You might try asking the teacher for recomendations - some schools even have an "approved snack list" of foods that are safe to choose from. While items containing peanuts are pretty easy to spot, the dairy allergies are tougher - a lot of the typical snacks people have mentioned wouldn't be allowed - cream cheese, pudding cups, etc., not to mention a lot of baked/prepared foods that contain dairy ingredients. It's not safe to just isolate the child with allergies at snack time - the problem is the other kids, being still young and a bit messy, may spill/smear their snack items where the allergic child can then come into contact with it. Teachers don't have time to do a complete wash down of all desks and surfaces after snack time, hence they ban them for safety. I know of a child with a diary allergy that can not even TOUCH dairy products, much less ingest it. I know it's a pain, I have a first grader too - but think of the moms of those poor kids who have to worry if their child will come in contact with these items while at school, and watch everything they eat! We only have to worry about it for one snack a day.

Hi J.,
I too understand the challenges of dealing with children and food allergies. My daughter, Sophie, is one of the many children facing this challenge every day. Sophie was diagnosed with an allergy to dairy and eggs at 6 months old. I recently founded "Sophie-cakes Allergen-free Bakery" to help in offering delicious treats that everyone (with or without allergies) can enjoy. We currently offer cupcakes, cakes, and cookies, all of which are dairy-free, egg-free, peanut-free, tree nut-free and we now offer gluten-free varieties as well. We are located in Cranston, RI. Please check out our website at www.sophie-cakes.com or call us at ###-###-#### to learn more about our menu offerings. And good luck!

pretzels, goldfish, crackers,

My daughter's school follows the no peanut butter, no tree nut policy. We send carrot sticks, raisins, rice cakes, goldfish or graham crackers, string cheese, applesauce, jam, pudding cups, air popped popcorn, tortilla chips, and fruit snacks. Hope this helps!