Is your child’s lunchroom permeated with peanut? Does your child need to sit at a peanut-free table? Should the entire school ban peanuts of any kind from the premises? These are all valid questions, but you can safely say that we have no universally correct answers to these questions. Parents, students, and school administrators often hold opposing views. Even different doctors can be in total disagreement.

I’m quite certain that prior to 1990, the peanut-free table was unheard of. Considering peanut-free tables since then has often been thought to be borderline un-American. Now peanut-free tables are the norm in most schools, and some schools ban peanut products altogether. So who’s right? Following is the approach I recommend:

Designate peanut-free zones up to the third or fourth grade. Preschool-age children are much more likely to be tempted to share food, to have lots of peanut on their hands, and have difficulty keeping their hands to themselves. As children grow older, these risks lessen.

Phase out peanut-free zones in higher grades. I am not convinced that peanut-free zones provide any additional safety for older students. In fact, I now write many more letters to get kids out of peanut-free tables than I do to get kids seated at peanut-free tables. This typically occurs in older children who have become fed up with being isolated at a peanut free table and whose parents accept that the risk of eating at regular table is incredibly small.

My recommendations may seem too safe for some and too risky for others. You, your child, and your school must work together to establish an acceptable level of safety that keeps kids safe without emotionally isolating them or preventing them from fully experiencing their school years.

Related posts:

1. Food Allergens : Washing peanut worries away
2. School and Food Allergy Management
3. Managing Food Allergies at Schools
4. Peanut Allergy : Deciphering the mysteries of peanut oils
5. Peanut Allergy : Other baked goods