Graduating to a Summer Blog Break, Plus a Nut-Free Basil Pesto Recipe!

Hi everyone and Happy Summer! As many of my regular readers know, I've not been blogging as much lately and that's for many reasons. One is that I've been working on some new and non-food allergy writing projects, the other is that I was super-busy getting my oldest daughter through her last few days of 8th grade. Yep, I have an 8th grade graduate, heading to high school next year.

Getting to this point with my daughter, who has severe peanut and tree nut allergies, has been a long but rewarding road. Those of you who read my blog regularly probably know that working with schools regarding food allergies has been one of my most frequently blogged topics. It's a big one.

As I sat in the audience watching my daughter receive her diploma, I thought back to kindergarten and how much we've been through together. School with food allergies hasn't always been easy -- field trips, parties, lunch tables and just understanding from others -- has been a challenge at times.  For those of you just embarking on the school with food allergies "journey" (not to sound like a reality show), take heart and remember to communicate. With everyone. Frequently. It's the only way, and if you go about it in a reasonable manner, you will be successful.

Many people still need a food allergy education so never feel badly about speaking up and speaking out. Reasonable, safe solutions can be found and kids with severe allergies CAN have a safe and healthy school experience, especially if compassion and preparation are involved. What I really want to say is that if we did it, so can you.

Use the "search" bar on the top left hand side of this blog to find lots of posts to help you with school.

After 6 and a half years of writing this blog, the time has come for me to take a break from it. I'm sure I will still have things to say about nut allergies -- always. Still, with a shortened summer due to our extended snow/cold days following a tough winter, some exciting summer travel and some new writing projects that I'm highly committed to, I feel the need to take some time off of the blog.

When I started The Nut-Free Mom blog in January of 2008, I'd been dealing with my daughter's food allergies for 4 years and I felt like I had learned a lot I wanted to share. I've been so happy to hear from the many wonderful and supportive readers of this blog who have also shared their stories with me. I'm also grateful that I was able to share much of what I've learned not only here, but in my Nut-Free Mom e-book parenting guide. Many of you have written to me or have taken the time to write a positive review of this little book and I'm happy that so many of you have found it and are still finding it useful -- it continues to be selling well on Amazon Kindle.

The Nut-Free Mom blog has more than 600 posts, so if you're just finding me, you have plenty to keep you occupied! I also encourage you to check out my e-book and Pinterest boards that deal with nut allergies. My Pinterest button is to the right of this post -- I have a lot of boards but many of them deal with allergies. If you're a Pinner, see you there!

Before I take my summer break, I want to share a recipe I've wanted to put on the blog for YEARS but for some reason, I never did. It's very fitting for summer: Nut-Free Basil Pesto. Basically, this is a cross between a traditional Italian pesto that has pine nuts or walnuts (a no-no for us, of course) and a Provencal "pistou" which is a basil sauce without nuts or cheese. (Don't worry, this recipe has cheese but no nuts. :))

The basil in my garden is booming -- maybe you have an herb garden too but if not, basil should be cheap and plentiful at the supermarket right now.

Here's the recipe. Enjoy it and enjoy your summer!

Nut-Free Mom's Nut-Free Basil Pesto

This doesn't make a huge amount, but a little pesto goes a long way. It's very flavorful! Toss it with pasta, add it to pizza or even to cold summer soups like gazpacho. If you have a LOT of basil, double the recipe.

2 cups firmly packed, fresh basil leaves, washed and dried
2 sprigs of fresh parsley (or use mint if you have it in your garden for a refreshing note)
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons unsweetened dairy butter or dairy-free margarine
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (or dairy-free cheese)
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
4 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil

In a food processor or blender, blend all ingredients EXCEPT the oil. Process until ingredients are finely minced. With the motor running, gradually add the olive oil and blend thoroughly.

You can freeze your pesto (in ice cube trays, if you like, for individual servings) for several months (how about a little pop of nut-free pesto on the kiddo's lunch pasta), but bring to room temperature before serving. Makes 1/2 cup.

Food Allergy News: Back to School Prep Can Start Now

I hope you are all enjoying summer as much as I am. Still, it is whizzing by! (Doesn't it always?) I know that many of you are thinking about preparing to send your child with food allergies back to school, so I am sharing a few links to my most popular posts on this subject.

First of all, where do you begin when getting ready for back-to-school with peanut and tree nut allergies? This post gets you started by showing you how/where to begin the discussion with your school.

And check out this link. You'll find a one-stop collection of many back-to-school blog posts including practical advice and tips you can use today.

My e-book shows you how to educate everyone in your circle on managing food allergies--including teachers.

I hope you enjoy every second that summer has to offer. And when you're ready to begin tackling the new school year, I hope these posts help get you on the right track! I've been through it all and I hope my experience can give you some guidance to reduce stress and get your child's school year off on a positive note.

Planning for the School Year with Food Allergies: Getting Started

I know, I know, we have our hands full just finishing this school year. Or maybe your little one is getting ready to begin kindergarten in the fall. That's a long way off, right? Not for those of us managing food allergies at school. Begin the conversation now.

Why I am stressing you out when it's not even May yet? I'm trying to save you some stress later and I speak from experience as someone who spoke to the principal in August back in the day before my daughter started kindergarten. The principal was hard to hunt down, especially before the school offices opened. Not to mention allergy offices.  Offices get crowded and allergists are busy filling out paperwork for their many food-allergic patients. Don't wait until the last minute.

Many parents are apprehensive to make that initial contact with a school because they aren't sure how they will be received. Or maybe a parent is simply unsure how to make the contact. My advice: just do it. Don't worry, in this day and age, you are not alone no matter what a school might tell you. They've likely heard previous food allergy requests. Be firm, knowledgeable and calm. It goes a long way.

Here's how you get started:

Who do I call?

Begin with the school's health office. Tell them you have a child with life-threatening food allergies and ask them what forms you need to fill out for a child to have and/or carry medication at school and any other forms they might require for medical purposes. It is also a good idea, especially at a new school, to place a call to the principal, introduce yourself and your child, and ask for details on the school's food allergy management practices.

Next, call your child's allergist. Have them fill out a Food Allergy Emergency Action Plan for your child; remember, most schools want this renewed each year. If things haven't changed for your child's condition, the doctor will have to fill out the same instructions, but make sure they are dated currently. If you plan to have a 504, the doctor will need to provide detailed background paperwork. Schools require up to date info, especially if any accommodations are to be made for Individual Health Plans or 504s, or for students to be allowed to self-carry medications like epinephrine. Your materials must be dated the current school year or they will not be honored.

You will also want to identify and call your district nurse. They are generally the people who will be issuing and signing off on medication forms and emergency plans. Get to know them and be sure to ask them what if any additional forms you might need or actions you need to take for your child's health and safety.

Know your facts, know your rights.

One piece of advice before you contact anyone: Know your rights. For example, if you want your child to have a 504 Plan (this refers to a section of the Americans with Disabilities Act and is a binding legal document that protects severely allergic children at school) then know that you must be evaluated for one if you request it. Many districts have a Special Needs Coordinator that you can speak to. If not, call the principal or if necessary the superintendent of schools. Here is an excellent source of 504 Plan information from the Arizona Food Allergy Alliance web site.

Another right that is frequently questioned is the right for a student to carry and/or have access to an epinephrine auto-injector in the classroom. Many states have laws that formally protect this right; here is a link that shows you where your state stands. Just because the law may not exist, though, doesn't mean your child can't have their medication nearby at all times. It just means that you may have to get an additional note from your doctor and be a little more assertive about it. What if your child is too young to self-carry and needs an adult to help? Check this recommendation from the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology:

 "For younger children, the epinephrine device should be kept in the classroom and passed from teacher to teacher as the child moves through the school (e.g., from classroom to music to PE to lunch)." 

Click the link to see the entire document; it has excellent recommendations for all ages of allergic students. Thanks to reader Irene R. for sharing this document on my Facebook page.

One more word about a child's access to medication. I can't tell you how many times a parent contacted me to say that their school told them the epinephrine auto-injector "had" to be kept in the school office and not with the child in the classroom, or with their child at "specials" like PE or Art. No, no and no. That does not work. If an epinephrine auto-injector is to be effective, it must be administered quickly in case of emergency.

Some people appear to believe that auto-injectors have magical properties, kind of like Harry Potter's wand. All you need to do is have it somewhere in the building and the magic will happen. You have to be clear that this is not the case--just being in the building is not good enough. Medication has to be at arm's length to be of any use. Your allergist can help you with this; mine wrote a special medical directive and it really helped get the message across.

I just read about a mom who went to replace her daughter's epinephrine prescription and the school could not locate her child's medications for EIGHTEEN minutes. To be blunt, that's life or death if you are in an emergency. Don't listen to the "we keep it in the school office" or "it's in a locked cabinet" baloney. No one can deny your child access to life-saving medication.

The last thing I want to do is get any of you on the defensive before you even know how the school handles allergies. Please don't assume the worst before you call but DO be prepared with facts, documents and a cool head.

Resources:

Here is a link to many back to school resources that will be helpful as you get back to school.

For training modules that schools can use, there are many new and wonderful resources. Two of my favorites are from Allergy Home, a site run by leading pediatric allergists; this module is free. You should also check out EpiCenter (TM) Medical, a new and easy-to-follow educational training module that explains anaphylaxis and describes treatment and prevention. Click the embedded links to find out more.

I wish you all a very smooth transition and preparation into school! Get started now and you'll have a much better summer and safer new school year.

 

 

Food Allergy and School: Love for the Peanut-Free Table

Nut-free or not nut-free...table. That is the question facing

many school-aged kids with allergies.

 

If your school-aged child is severely allergic to peanuts, tree nuts, or both, you've probably been offered (or maybe you've asked for) a nut-free or peanut-free lunch table. Our current school district recently went one step further to offer an "allergy-free table" that addresses multiple food allergies. Since these tables are frequently part of a child's 504 plan or Individual Health Plan, they are likely to continue cropping up at an increasing number of schools.

In general, though, it's usually a peanut or nut-free table being talked about at school. If your school is offering you this option, that is a sign that they are taking allergies seriously which is a very good thing. Unfortunately, the peanut-free table has gotten a bit of a stigma. Some of the common objections: nobody wants to sit there, it's punishment for having allergies, kids are isolated and alone, it's not the "real world" way of doing things, etc.

Please believe: I do understand why some of us might have that perspective, but as a parent whose child has used and benefited from a nut-free table, I want to reassure parents that it doesn't have to be that way. Especially in the younger grades, when kids are not as able to manage their own allergies, a nut-free table can provide a safe place to eat during the school day. For the "real world" objectors, I also am a strong proponent of helping kids live in the real world. But the fact is, in the real world, they can get up and move if allergens are presenting a problem for them. Not so in most schools with strict seating and behavior policies.

In particular, I want us to remember why these tables are being offered in the first place: to provide allergic kids with a clean, allergen-free place to enjoy their midday meal that reduces the risk of exposing them to a potentially dangerous allergic reaction.

From a social point of view, the table should be open to non-allergic kids who have brought an allergy-friendly lunch. Encourage your child to ask his or her friends to join them. Seriously, most kids are so used to the "free-from table" concept that they happily accompany their buddies to this table. If you are not finding this to be true for you, ask your child's teacher for some help in bringing kids to the table to join your child.

One day I asked my youngest (no food allergies) where she sat at lunch that day and she said "I tried to sit with my friend at the nut-free table, but it was full." This turned out to be a common occurrence--so many kids wanted to sit with the friends who had nut allergies, that they ended up having to take turns. I know that this doesn't always happen, but most kids will not want to sit apart from their good friends and will want to join them at lunch, no matter what table it is.

An alternative to an entire nut-free table that we were provided with at our previous elementary school was an "allergy-free zone." This was an assigned seat for the kids with allergies, usually at or near the end of a table. Only kids with cafeteria lunches (nut-free) or those without nut products sat in or near this zone. Because they had ample lunchroom supervision, this worked really well for my daughter. She still got to sit with her class and friends, but she was not plopped in the middle of a group of kids eating PB & J, something she felt uncomfortable about due to the severity of her allergy.

Today, I asked a local expert -- my daughter -- what she thought about nut-free tables in elementary school and if there was anything she thought parents needed to know about them. (Since she's sat at a nut-free table or in a "nut-free zone" of the cafeteria her entire school career up until now, I hope you will agree she's probably an expert on this topic.) She brought up some good points. She told me that as long as she could bring a couple of friends to the nut-free table, she definitely preferred sitting there at lunch for peace of mind. She told me she can't really enjoy her food if she's worried about cross-contact, which can result in an accidental ingestion.

However, there have been some struggles and she emphasized to me that everyone needed to know about the table and the rules for the table. That includes all the lunchtime supervisors and the kids, too, so that everyone understood that a few friends could sit at the allergy-free table provided they had a "safe" lunch and that the table would be reserved "allergy-table" use only. (A sign on the table itself proved helpful in this case.)

No one should be forced to sit at a specific table and every parent and child will have to make the decision about what seating option works the best for them and their situation. Work with your school to find the best solution. Based on our family's experience with the "nut-free" table, I've found that like most things in life, this table is what you make of it. If you view it as a safe place for a child to eat lunch and a way to reduce allergy risk so that they can get on with their school day, there is a good chance your child just might view it positively as well.

Food Allergy News: The Nut-Free Mom on WBEZ's news magazine "Eight Forty Eight"

It was a beautiful day to be at Navy Pier in Chicago and that's where I was today as a guest at WBEZ, the local Chicago affiliate of National Public Radio. The morning news magazine "Eight Forty-Eight" (named after the Grand Ave. address of the Navy Pier building)featured the topic of food allergies and I was honored to appear as the parent voice for this topic. My daughter Alexandra (pictured above) joined me on my radio adventure.

I want to thank WBEZ for offering me this opportunity to help educate the public about what it's like to parent a child with food allergies. That is truly appreciated. And I was so fortunate to be paired with the knowledgeable and very personable Dr. Steve Handoyo. He explained the scientific side of allergies in an extremely clear and thoughtful manner, so thanks also to Dr. Steve!

Here is the link to the radio show ; you can listen online or download a podcast.