KY - 8th grader put peanut butter in allergic classmate's lunch, Lexington, 2008

[SewingDeb]

I don't think it is right for the school to ban anything but educating students and teachers goes a long way. Our school had a regular day for peanut butter sandwiches and on that day, my daughter eats her lunch in the classroom and a few of her friends are allowed to choose to stay and eat with her.

In this particular case, school policy stated that students could bring nothing from home. If this girl brought the cookies with peanuts from home, it is premeditated. JMO.

 

[SewingDeb]

JBean, I agree with you. Anything to save a life, and it is a life or death thing with many children. I would not want to be responsible for a child dying because I thought my child just had to have something at school. They can have it at home anytime so what's the big deal?

 

[pixies]

I simply have a problem with people demanding they be accommodated. I compare it to a child with a disability. If a child can't walk and is bound to a wheelchair ..of course accomodations will need to be made to allow access for the handicapped child. No one asks all of the other children to give up walking, gym, climbing stairs.

Exactly!
These parents can always send in a bagged lunch and snack and instead of being upset that other parents are sending in food their kids cannot eat, they should send in food that their kids can eat!

If your child has a severe allergy to certain foods you have to take responsibility for that child, don't put it off on other parents.

Really though, if my children could DIE from eating a common food, no way would I send my child to school.

 

[SewingDeb]

Exactly!
These parents can always send in a bagged lunch and snack and instead of being upset that other parents are sending in food their kids cannot eat, they should send in food that their kids can eat!

If your child has a severe allergy to certain foods you have to take responsibility for that child, don't put it off on other parents.

Really though, if my children could DIE from eating a common food, no way would I send my child to school.

For the record, we never trusted the school lunches and always packed lunches for both of my daughters who have severe food allergies. We were not going to keep them from going to school or force others not to eat what they wanted. One of our biggest problems was getting the school to understand that locking our daughter's epi pen in the school secretary's desk was not ideal. We had to fight for our daughter to also have one on her person at all times. Same with inhalers for our other daughter's asthma.

Thank God they are now 18 and 19 and they know how to manage their own diets and medications.

 

[swanniee11]

My daughter has gone to school with a boy since Kindergarten that has a severe peanut allergy.(they are in 4th grade now) The whole school and every child knows about it. The parents are very open and have given other parents their phone # in the event we would bring in snacks we would call them and they would send in something for their son to eat to be safe. This boy sits away from other kids in the lunch room where his area is cleaned before and after. He is allowed to have others sit with him once their lunches are checked out. The school serves PB&J as an option everyday.

 

[NewMom2003]

These threads always shock me. I will never get used to so many people not being inspired in some way to help even one less fortunate.
I would have welcomed the opportunity to teach my children about many doing something for one child.

This is peanut butter for gosh sakes.Serve it for dinner if it is that important to your child's well being.
hmm pb or life? pb or life? I just can't decide.

Thank you. :clap: I feel the same way.

 

[jannuncutt]

I think that the 8th grader should be punished for what he did and educated about the allergy. However, I think that charging this child with a felony is absurd!

 

[lew657]

I have to weigh in on this one with some personal experience...

My nephew was in grade school with a child who was allergic to peanuts. His parents raised a HUGE stink threatening to sue the school board in every paper around if the didn't ban peanuts from the entire school. BIG problem for my nephew who is allergic to the preservatives used in lunch meat - as a single mother my sisters choices were PB&J or making a meal for a lunch. Making my nephew look like the odd child. My point if 1 parent wants changes so their child doesn't appear "special" they need to realize they may be putting another child in that same situation.

My friend's son also has a peanut allergy. The school has peanut free tables for him to eat at and she has always made sure to bring in a treat for him whenever other kids are bringing in treats. Yes he looks special but he and his mother take responsibility for his safety.

Now I don't think this justifies what this child and there should be some sort of punishment, I just don't know that criminal charges are really warranted at this stage. I think the only way to know that would be to know the child involved.

BUT I do believe the schools need to be consisted - if you are going to ban peanuts from schools for the sake of a few than you should take the step to ban fragrances. I have had to leave restaurants because I was allergic to the perfume the person next to me took a bath in.

 

[michelle]

I think that the 8th grader should be punished for what he did and educated about the allergy.

He definatly needs to be educated.

 

[JBean]

2 topics going on here. One is if this boy should be punished for deliberately trying to do something to the boy with the allergy.(yes)
The other topic is if it is fair to ban all peanut products when one child could die from exposure. (yes)
These 2 topics seem to be morphing into one and it is getting hard to follow. JMHO of course!!

 

[JBean]

I have to weigh in on this one with some personal experience...

My nephew was in grade school with a child who was allergic to peanuts. His parents raised a HUGE stink threatening to sue the school board in every paper around if the didn't ban peanuts from the entire school. BIG problem for my nephew who is allergic to the preservatives used in lunch meat - as a single mother my sisters choices were PB&J or making a meal for a lunch. Making my nephew look like the odd child. My point if 1 parent wants changes so their child doesn't appear "special" they need to realize they may be putting another child in that same situation.

My friend's son also has a peanut allergy. The school has peanut free tables for him to eat at and she has always made sure to bring in a treat for him whenever other kids are bringing in treats. Yes he looks special but he and his mother take responsibility for his safety.

Now I don't think this justifies what this child and there should be some sort of punishment, I just don't know that criminal charges are really warranted at this stage. I think the only way to know that would be to know the child involved.

BUT I do believe the schools need to be consisted - if you are going to ban peanuts from schools for the sake of a few than you should take the step to ban fragrances. I have had to leave restaurants because I was allergic to the perfume the person next to me took a bath in.

If the fragrances can be fatal then absoultely they should be banned IMO.

I am annoyed in a big way by fragrances, but they won't kill me. So everyone can carry on in the perfume thread

 

[LinasK]

You can't expect everyone in an entire school not to be allowed something because one child is allergic.

My daughter's pre-school was. It was nut-free, and it was highly publicized to the parents not to bring any snacks that were even made on the same assembly line as any nut products. I thought it was a pain-in-the-, but I do understand the severity of the allergies more clearly than I used to.

 

[LinasK]

I'm not attempting a peanut vs other food debate here - I'm again, seriously trying to understand why so much change is expected to made for ONE group of allergic persons, when SO MANY (allergic groups) exist.

I think because of the severity of it, because peanut allergies can be airborne and that much more immediate than saying consuming other types of food allergens. I have developed a food intolerance to onions, they'll give me diarrhea, but I won't die from them.

 

[LinasK]

On a side note, my daughter just recently had a birthday party at our house. Her little boyfriend has a peanut allergy and a couple of others. I completely forgot about that fact when we ordered her birthday cake- ice cream with peanut butter in it(her request)! As soon as I realized it before the party, I notified his mother and she, and the mother of the kid with gluten intolerance brought their own food. Nobody around here thinks bringing your own special food is a big deal anymore, and most parents will ask if there's anything your kid can't eat or drink. My daughter has problems with dairy and we don't eat beef by choice.

 

[SewingDeb]

That's the way we always did it. If my daughters were invited to birthday parties, I always brought a cupcake and tofu icecream for them (two have severe milk allergies and the one has peanut allergies and asthma as well).

When they were in preschool and elementary school, I signed up for all the parties and made cakes that all could enjoy (that is so easy to do and no one can tell the difference).

I was the one who assigned other party foods to the other parent volunteers so I could assign things all the children could eat. I was also there to make sure they didn't eat anything they weren't supposed to. I went on every field trip for the same reason.

It's much harder when they hit middle and high school. You just have to trust that they know what not to eat and have medication with them in case they accidentally get anything they shouldn't.

I do think at 13 this boy knew the consequences of his actions. It was attempted murder, imo, and a felony charge is warranted.

He might have seen the TV showswhere someone puts peanut butter in a juror's chili. On the show (CSI, I think), there was a death as the result and it was premeditated.

 

[michelle]

He might have seen the TV showswhere someone puts peanut butter in a juror's chili. On the show (CSI, I think), there was a death as the result and it was premeditated.

I think I seen that.