Education Experts Share Ways of Developing Food Allergy Policies for Schools

Graphic courtesy of achooallergy.com.

ALEXANDRIA, Va.- Witnessing the number of school age children with food allergies increase “dramatically” over the last decade, “schools now have a critical role to play in preventing medical emergencies as well as responding to such emergencies,” said Brenda Z. Greene, director of school health programs at the National School Board Association, Alexandria, Va.

Ms. Greene gave her comments during the second session of the School Nutrition Foundation’s three-part webinar series. In this second session dealing with food allergy management policy making, Ms. Greene added that, “policy is the underpinning of the government in the local school districts and schools.

“The 15,000 school boards across the country are governed by the policies they adopt, which must comply with federal, state, and local laws.”

Ms. Greene though cautioned, saying, “We learned that one size does not fit all and policy needs to protect, but it also needs to be flexible. Local conditions and capacities vary.”

As part of developing policy strategies that can be incorporate into school districts around the country, the NSBA is working with the Division of Adolescent School Health at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as The Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network.

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Getting the Most Out of Food Allergy Management Programs in Schools

Graphic courtesy of Nosneezezone.com.

ALEXANDRIA, Va.- Food allergies are a growing concern in school nutrition. “It has been estimated that about 11 million Americans have a food allergy, representing about two percent of adults, and six to eight percent of children under the age of three,” said Jeannie Sneed, a food safety specialist with the USDA Food and Nutrition Services.

Ms. Sneed gave her comments during the first session of the School Nutrition Foundation’s three-part webinar series. In this first session dealing with managing food allergies in schools, Ms. Sneed added that, “school nutrition personnel are being asked more and more frequently to accommodate food allergy needs, so we believe that it is important to provide opportunities to dialogue about the role of school nutrition in meeting these demands.”

According to Ms. Sneed, approximately 90 percent of all food allergies are the results of an immune response, such as an anaphylactic reaction, to the following foods/ingredients: peanuts, tree nuts, milk, wheat, soy, fish, and shell fish.

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