I Can Not Believe This.....

Sorry, I would complain about that too. My kids are super picky and don't eat any vegetables and very few fruits. From the little kids that I have known I would say probably about 1/4 would eat fruits and veggies at pre-school. The rest would go without a snack. Yep-us parents whose kids don't eat them are BAD so go ahead and flame away all of you who have kids who DO eat them. I for one am sick of being judged for stuff like this.

My take on this is that I had the kid with the allergy, I would feel bad restricting the entire class so I would probably work something out where I provided the snack for my own kid based on his/her allergy.

My child is intolerant to 40+ foods (getting better though). I never ask other people to accommodate it - I just send his food with him. If he does mistakenly eat something he shouldn't he will feel sick but he will still be able to function.

IMHO the biggest concern in a classroom is an anaphylactic reaction - if there is an allergy to that degree then the item should be banned (i.e. peanuts). Otherwise I think parents should provide their own food for special needs.

Whole Foods has an entire allergen list (and suggested foods) that they will provide at the service desk (if you ask). You could get lots of ideas there.

I am sorry but I have to agree with the parent who complained to the teacher. At my sons' school, the children with allergies sit at a section of a table so there is no cross contamination of food and there is a strict no sharing policy. We do have a boy who is deathly allergic to wheat, eggs, and nuts. His mother has taught the staff and her son how the procedures for him to safely be at school without taking those items out of the school. He is in second grade, has been there since K and has never had a incident at school. To think that only vegetables or fruit could be brought as a snack is ridiculous. To think that a parent would have to go to a special store and spend additional money to buy non wheat, non egg white substitutes is ridiculous for those who do not have allergies.

We eat quite healthy and fruit and vegetables are a big part of our diet. In addition, I have an allergy to shellfish but I would never think that the rest of the world has to change for my needs. What are these kids going to do in the real world? Real fast they are going to have to learn to avoid these items.

I think you are only looking at this issue from the perpective of a parent who has a child with allergies. What if that mother that asked that teacher has a child that has textual issues with foods and crackers are an easy fix for her and her child? I think you were extremely rude to think that she was so out of place.

I have to say that I sympathize with the mom who was frustrated with the restrictions. Feeding a toddler is hard enough without having a whole list of foods that are suddenly off limits. My son is also in preschool and I received a long list of foods that were ok versus those that were not okay when he started. I'm fine with the allergy stuff, and my son attends a nut-free school, but this list included all sorts of things that the school has determined I may not send my son for lunch that have nothing to do with allergies. It just irks me to no end.
Anyway, if you are a mom whose kids happily eat fruits and veggies for snack everyday, great, but not all of us are so lucky, despite our best efforts and it's easy to feel a bit overwhelmed as a mom when your already limited snack options are slashed even further.

mallory p - i can see your point, some kids are picky. but a child with a life threatening allergy ranks a little higher on the priority scale than a kid that doesn't like something. some food allergies are airborn, so just having certain foods in the same room is dangerous. i am fortunate, none of my children have food allergies, so i just try to be thankful that i am not one of those parents that has to worry.

most kids like fruits, and since dairy in general wasn't listed as a "no no", there's lots of choices. rice chex and corn chex are gluten free, so that takes the wheat issue out right off the bat. mix up a baggie of those with raisins(or m&ms!).

I see both sides of the argument and I do agree a list of snack suggestions is a good idea. While I am more on the side of "yes, let's ban these from the classroom", I wouldn't be opposed to sending special snacks for my child on a daily basis. He has peanut/nut allergies. It is very disturbing to hear such negative talk regarding people that have special circumstances that may truly be life threatening, not simply an inconvenience. Here are a couple things to think about...

- we don't know what percentage of the kids in the class have these allergies. In my son's preschool class of 15 last year, 7 of them had allergies. Quite a bit different from the 95% vs 5% ratio another mom suggested.

- we don't know how severe these allergies are. It is quite possible that there are kids with severe reactions in the classroom. Perhaps the teacher/school is trying to avoid a situation in which the classmates are exposed to seeing their friend in a life threatening situation. Have you ever seen you child break out in hives, have his eyes swell shut and have difficulty breathing...all in a matter of a few minutes or less? Been there, don't want to go there again. I'm sure my daughter, who watched her older brother morph before her eyes, would agree.

- for those of you without kids who have special needs of any kind, is it so much to ask to help create a safe environment for these kids? Wouldn't you want a little compassion for your own children if the tables were turned?

My MIL can't have wheat and eats a lot of RICE crackers and RICE cakes.

As for that one mom -- she sounds ridiculous. Find out which kid is hers and make sure your child doesn't become best friends with hers. Ha.

My son started pre-k this year and he is DEATHLY allergic to milk, eggs, peanuts and tree nuts! I say deathly and I mean deathly! I have told the teachers and I told the parents at the p/t meeting. I know I can't ask that the school be peanut free right now but I wish that they would be! I have to prepare myself everyday that this might be the last time I see my son breathing... you moms out there that don't deal with this, I understand... I had never had to until 3 years ago, PLEASE try to understand!!!! this is a life or death issue!!!!! milk, eggs, and wheat are not an airborne risk, peanuts and tree nuts ARE and the oil that stays on their hands... I know that teachers don't look to see who has pb&j and then makes sure to take them in and wash up after they are done eating. This really is a scary and very real thing. I think that people that don't know very much about it and if they have a child in the class that has an allergy to something they should look it up, watch a clip on it or SOMETHING so they can be informed about it. I just decided today that I am moving my son to half day mornings because the threat is MUCH smaller and I won't have to worry SO much. I am also taking a video up there so that the teachers and Principal can watch it so they understand how severe food allergies really are. I will also be starting my own "Please keep our kids safe, ban peanuts/tree nuts from ALL schools'' very soon and taking it to our State Capital! :)

Some schools in my area are nut free. Even teachers can't pack peanut butter for their own lunch! This isn't uncommon anymore and in a social setting where children can not be constantly monitored and their life could be at risk, we should be careful. My kids aren't big veggie eaters, and would rather have junk, most kids would, but if they choose to go without a snack then so be it, it isn't worth another kid getting sick.

Anyways, nutella is great, we do ants on a log or toilet seat (celery, nutella, raisins, or apple slice, nutella, raisins) and there are a TON of great wheat and glutton free recipes out there, even mixes that come in a box, just read labels. I've even went and made small bento boxes, for my kids when they need to take snacks to share, it's amazing how making something into cute shapes and stuff can get even picky kids to try something new.
FYI if you have cheese slices and some cookie cutters, you can make all sorts of cute things.

in our school they push pretzels as an alternative.. not sure about the eggs... check the package... but i know they are usually a great alternative... my son isn't big on fruit and veggies.. but he loves some ... like grapes.. loves these or cut up watermelon.. so their has to be something this mothers who complained kids could eat... she should grow up... these kids that have allergies are at risk of getting really sick if they come into contact with some of these things.. i would check on the pretzels.. also popcorn is probably ok too... fruit kabobs are fun.. even if it's a small kabob with on strawberry and one grape.. or a blueberry and a strawberry... it could be fun if you want it to be.. good luck you sound like a great mom

I am annoyed with all of these allergies the general public is supposed to be concerned about. No one I ever went to school with was allergic to anything except one girl who couldn't have chocolate. We all ate it anyway. Why are so many kids like this now?

To me, its another annoyance like the glass prohibition in school age kids lunches. My child will not ingest anything from plastic, BPA lined cans, etc. so long as I can help it. Glass is clearly the less toxic option. Babies learned to be safe around glass long before someone invented a plastic sippy cup.

Popcorn, SOME dry cereals, corn chips.

Good luck,
K.

Sounds like you have it figured out. I commend you taking it so well. I am myself allergic to peanuts. It is a severe allergy and smelling or coming in contact with it can cause severe reactions. I have never heard of banning wheat or egg whited, so that may make it some difficulty. I think cheese chucks or string cheese, fruits and veggies with dipping sauce, yogurt, and apple sauce are excellent choices. For the picky unhealthy ones, most chips and pudding cups would still be allowed. I might do a web search for health snacks for small children as well as taking a shopping trip and just look around for some ideas.

I personally think it's ridiculous to not allow any of those things. Let the kids bring their own snacks. Have a "Safe" food table. 95% of the kids shouldn't be restricted because of a few.

Egg whites? really? A glutton-free diet for everyone. Really? The more I read about absurd school rules such as these the more inclined I am to home-school.

I can see both sides; I have a son in preschool who is allergic to all dairy, although not life-threatening!! I just want to make sure he doesn't eat too much of it!! I always feel so bad writing down his dairy allergy because I know that is such a huge source of snacks for other children! My daughter does not have the allergy and lives on dairy products!! I always end up telling the teachers and as many parents as I can to simply not worry about it!! As a little here or there is not going to hurt him. My son can just eat the other things! I kinda wish we could all just pack our own child's snacks as my son is a huge veggie and fruit eater (my daughter not as much,lol) As for any allergy that is life threatening or can cause serious health issues that should not be questioned!!

Fruit, veggies and dairy products are all good. For my son's class last week, I also brought in slices of turkey (rolled up and stuck with a toothpick).

Not all crackers contain wheat, so if you read the labels, you can probably find ones that would work.

Some of the health food stores (Whole Foods, Sprouts, Henry's) sell nut-free trail mix by a brand called "Enjoy Life." Enjoy Life also makes good granola bars that are free of all allergens listed above.

Many schools are willing to go nut-free if needed, since the airborne risk from nuts is so high. As for the others, banning wheat and egg whites entirely seems like a pretty bold move.

My son is very allergic to dairy, eggs, and all nuts (though airborne nut particles do not affect him, fortunately). I am going to send him to school with his own snack every day. If he's able to eat what the rest of the class is having, that's great, but if not, I know he won't be hungry. I don't expect or trust the other parents enough to have them provide a truly dairy-free snack, since those who don't live with it don't understand how complicated it really is.

For all who posted below along the lines of "too bad for the kid with allergies," it wouldn't hurt to be a little more sensitive to what this child and his family has to deal with. In some ways, allergies are like any other illness or disability and a little extra accommodation never hurts.

My son is Celiac (gluten free diet: no wheat, barley, rye) and I always provided his own snack. It just made it easier and I knew what he was getting. I tried to coordinate it with what the snack other kids were getting that day so he wouldn't feel too left out. When they had parties, parents were great about trying to make everyone a GF snack (cupcakes, etc). Other than that, it was usually fruits, veggies, cheese, etc. As a dietitian also, our snacks do need to healthy to teach our kids better eating habits. I applaud the teacher for nipping it in the butt with that parent!

My son's school bypassed that by requiring parents to provide snacks for their own kid only. I like this because it makes it easier. That way to allergic child can be accomodated easier. I also have more control over what he eats. Honestly, I've seen some of the so-called snacks parents have for their children like donuts. Ya that's just great. My son gets those crackers with peanut butter in them. Not fantastic but I know what he'll eat. Better than donuts=)

i have never had to deal with allergies of this kind, thank goodness. i have also never had to deal with a "picky" (aka catered) kid. but given the choice i would conform to a child with health issues LONG before i would a picky kid. those kids come to my house and they eat the healthy meal before them, or don't eat. period.

I believe the mom was within her rights to complain. Not everyone is knowledgeable of certain approved snacks, especially in instances where multiple allergies are involved. It sounds like she was complaining out of not knowing what to bring, not from lack of caring about the children with allergies.

I know of plenty of women who were perplexed as to what to feed their children after very restricting allergy diets were recommended.

The fault here lies with the school, they should have provided a "safe to bring' example list, so the parents could have a good idea of what to bring.

It's sounds like you may be thinking you are little loftier than others, these children don't only eat fruits and veggies.... What do you say to parents whose children have fruit and veggie allergies?

Fruits and vegetables are not an exhaustive list of what all could be brought. If you go to a whole foods store, there are several types of corn chips, crackers and other gluten free type cookies and such that can be given, you just need to read the label carefully to be sure an egg substitute was used as well. Even some gluten free cakes and such can be made with egg substitutes. Cheese, yogurt covered raisins, some granola, possibly jello, maybe gluten free graham crackers in honey and such can be good too.

Things such as m&m's or any other type of nut (like hazelnut, and such) cannot be brought, because it is processed in a factory that processes nuts and can be dangerous (I think nutella is safe, read the label). Unless the label reads it is safe and not processed in a peanut factory.

cottage cheese with a little jam on top, nutella(chocolate hazelnut butter) and crackers, raisins, candy coated sunflower seeds, yogurt pretzels, soy crisps, baked wheat sticks

we have no rule at my daughters school for what to pack, they are forbidden from sharing food, but i put fruit in her lunch every day.

Any kind of fruit "sauce" is good and the yogurt tubes -GoGurts and Horizon Dairy Organics are always big hits. Raisins and dried fruits are often popular with kids. My kids love dried fruit and my youngest will eat the dried version of some he won't eat raw. Fruit leathers are good too, and you don't have to get the sugary gummy candy/fruit stuff (although you could use those sometime and some have 100% Vitamin C). Check out Trader Joe's if one is nearby. They have LOTS of good snack stuff that is organic and often specified as okay for certain allergies. I don't know if LaraBar bars contain egg whites, but you could check. I'm personally not a huge fan, but they're gluten free and my sons LOVE them. I was shocked! Some do contain nuts, so you would have to look at that.

I don't know how they do it at your child's school, but I send home a snack basket with the child who's snack day it is next. Only one child per day brings snack (it's also their show and tell day, again, one child per day, phew! LOL) and in the basket is a laminated card with a nice list of snack suggestions. Also on the card has a reminder in bold and underlined letters, about whatever allergies to be aware of. The card stays in the basket. Also, about every other month in the newsletter, I thank the parents for the wonderful snacks and their great job in providing snacks without the allergic ingredients. If your school doesn't send home a snack basket, perhaps a suggestion list in the monthly newsletter would work. Even without allergies, and I don't have any this year YAY!, a suggestion card/list is handy because sometimes parents are just at a loss for snacks.

Before I tell you my opinion, let me say that I am ALL for the healthy snacks. I don't like my kid's getting cookies and kool-aide everyday at school for snacks. Snacks are supposed to be part of your diet. Cookies are supposed to be for a special treat. That being said, I have no problem for having that as a snack for a birthday or halloween. They aren't bad when limited. ;)

As far as the children's allergies being banned for the whole class/school. I am all for it if the child has a documented need (by a physician) d/t severe allergic reactions. The problem with banning just by what a parent says, is that many parents don't understand what a "true" allergy is. Or, they say their child is allergic just because they don't want their child to have it. The other problem is that if parents list everything they don't want their kids to have d/t personal preferences and not true allergies that list can get very long and make it too difficult to provide a variety of snacks. I have known several who have said their child is allergic to gluten, because they believe their child's behavior problems are a result of gluten. In that case, I don't think you should have to ban it for all (just bring your own snack everyday)......it is not a life threatening allergy. But, if a child has already had a severe allergy to tree nuts, for instance, then, I think it is appropriate to ban them for that child's safety. Even if that child with the severe allergy brought his/her own food, you can't be sure the kids won't trade food or share food.......at least not 100% sure.

That being said.........GO FRUITS AND VEGGIES!!!!! So what if that is what is offered and the picky eating kids don't eat any. Lunch is not that far away! Besides, if you offer it often enough (I mean often), they will eventually like a lot of it. My kids are living proof. I try to make sure meals are mostly what they like with the addition of something new or "yukky" (lol), but snacks are what is offered or nothing. The day my son (picky as they can get), actually ate ALL his dinner in order to get a salad (dinner is dinner at our house, unless you eat it all) was a very happy day for us. ;)

What about a snack roll. Tortilla shell of some kind, like spinach (not sure if you can find gluten free), phili cream cheese and ham, all wrapped up in a tortilla shell. If you have the requirements that it MUST be store bought, then what about veggie chips, sweet potato chips.

My son has peanut, tree nut and pear allergies. He's in the 4th grade and each year I provide a box of 'safe' snacks and drinks that he is allowed to have that are kept in the classroom. This way when a parent sends in a snack or treat that he can't have he can still participate.

You know I've never been one to blindly follow authority, but geez, some people must have such boring lives if they have nothing better to complain about than something like this. I know a child with a milk allergy, he can't even let it touch his skin! Peanut-free schools are very common, that allergy can be deadly.
Some of my ideas:
pudding cups
rice pudding
popcorn
wheat-free cereals
Good luck. Our school has put limits on sugar for our kids' snacks i.e. we can't send anything in that has sugar as either of the first two ingredients. I have no problem with that. My daughter had a long list of food allergies when she was little, but none were life threatening (she had severe eczema), and so I *was* that mom that sent in special food, but only because the list was so long it would have been impossible to ask all the other parents to adhere to it. But three items that are easy to find alternatives for? I don't see a problem with that. I hope the teacher sends home a suggestion list soon, though, I think that would help everyone.

Off the subject but adansmama what does "picky' (aka catered) child mean? Are you telling me that my picky eater is because I cater to his demands? So the pure fact that he I put out every food kind possible and he still wont eat it mean I cater to him? I know that he is still young, but when he is older I wont stand for it if he is. Sorry but I'm offended!!

Any who. I find see both sides. I will be feeding my son healthier snacks, but occasionally will give him cookies or something. But I also am getting him tested on Wed for his food allergy's. So with that being a potential. . . I can totally side with banning. I find it great that you are wanting to find other snacks other than just fruits and veggies.
What about fruit leather? It's a fun twist on just fruit!

We recently did a math/nutrition experience with a group of teachers in hopes that they would use it with the children. The recipe was in pictures and in print so there were preliteracy skills involved. Each child gets 1/4 apple, which they chopand plastic knives work just fine; 3 inches of celery which they measure and chop for themselves; 8 raisins; 2 Tbs. of either plan or fruit yogurt. The teachers loved it and it is such a great experience for the kids.

This is a little weird, but I love dried peas. I get them at the health food store. Rice cakes are always a good one.

i'm not a big sweet person for my kids either, but our snack approval list included pudding & i was surprised to see on the ingredients list that it was ok. And, i was happy to hear from my son that their first day of snack was apples. :)

I make my kids "apple suns" and "apple spiders". We make ours with sliced apples, peanutbutter, and raisins, but it works with sunbutter (sunflower-butter) too!

Make sure you have enough flat circles for the faces, slice the rest for legs or rays of the sun, then use the raisins to make a happy face. My 2 and 6 year old both seem to enjoy these more than the same snack without the arrangement.

My kids also love FruitBu (we call them smooshy fruit). It's fruit leather made with just fruit & juice.

Also - Can you find out if the wheat alergy is actually celiac disease (gluten sensitivity)? If yes, you can also make cookies and cakes for special snacks using vegan "eggs".

Almond butter on celery sticks with cranberries. My kids favorite =-)

Don't forget ALMOND BUTTER as an alternative to peanut butter.

My daughter is in a class with a little boy who must be peanut, tree nut and dairy free or could cause anaphalatic shock if anything with these ingredients touched his skin. Its awful, no cheese, yogurt or milk in the classroom for snack time, but for lunch the kids with the allergy eat at the "safe table". Its becoming more and more common all over US. Hopefully the fruit & veggies works, until kids like my nephew are allergic to citrus fruits or like my uncle allergic to strawberries. All Parents & Teachers need to teach kids to eat only what their parents sent for snack/lunch and NO SHARING!

Some parents are just idiots and think "snack" has to be pre-packaged junk:(
But really, you can buy all kinds of pre-packaged snacks, good and junk, that are allergen free. All you do is look in the ingredient list to see what is listed. After all ingredients are listed there is a separate "Allergen" listing that will list any nuts, soy, eggs, milk. With a TINY bit of effort, she can still provide all the junk she wants :(

I think it's silly that someone should have to provide a snack for the entire class AND avoid allergens in the whole class. I understand the peanut and tree nut allergies as those can be deadly. But trying to find wheat, egg white free snacks as well? I have food allergies myself and have years of experience buying to avoid those allergies. It's NOT easy!

Why can't everyone just bring their own snack and be done with it? No one knows what your child can have better than you. It's so hard to read ingredients carefully, what if a parent slips up? It's easy to do, I've done it to myself.

Fruits and veggies are great snacks, but they are expensive sometimes. A small basket of strawberries is $4, a small bag of grapes is $4. You could easily spend a lot of money buying fruits and veggies for the whole class!

I think your school should ban peanuts and tree nuts and let everyone bring their own safe snack. If my child had allergies I wouldn't let her eat anything that I didn't pack myself anyway.

I totally agree that the kids should be given healthy snacks, but I wonder sometimes how kids with allergies this severe function in society. If your child can't even be in the same room as someone who opens a bag of peanuts without DYING how can they go ANYWHERE and not encounter that problem. If this was true they wouldn't be able to enter any public place, especially any store, without getting deathly ill. I'm not saying that there aren't very very rare cases where this might be true, but I think that many parents over sell their kids allergies. I don't believe that it is common enough to warrant eliminating peanuts from every schools. My father-in-law does have a deadly peanut allergy in addition to other food allergies......he spent months in the hospital as a child trying to figure these things out.....but now he's in his 60's and he is FINE unless he is right next to someone eating peanuts at that moment. Even in that case he starts to feel sick, but doesn't have a life threatening response. My in-laws even keep peanut butter in the house. He never expects other people to take responsibility for his allergy. If your child spends his whole childhood in an artificial bubble, what will he do as a grown-up? Unless they go on permanent disability they won't be able to expect peanut-free, dairy-free, soy-free etc. everywhere they go.