An Example of How Safe Snack Lists Really Aren't Safe

[maeve]

http://www.valleydrive.com/uploads/vdpssnacklist.pdf

There are several items on here that raised red flags for me.  The bagels for one.  We stopped using Thomas' a few years ago after I called them and they said they use shared lines with nuts.  We've now pulled Arnold from our list of safe breads because of their acquisition by Bimbo.  Many brands of hummus also use pine nuts.

Don't even get me started on the baking mixes for birthday celebrations or the cut up fruit and veggies from home (from our home yes but not anybody elses). 

I came across this searching for ingredients for Safeway saltines because I remembered that at the time DD had her anaphylactic reaction that our local Safeway had a variety of saltine with peanut flour.  That was more than 8 years ago.  Not sure why I decided to do the search (except maybe for boredom and the idea popped into my head).

Edited to add below:

The school says it is peanut and tree nut free.  It's a Co-Op preschool and parents are responsible for bringing snack on the days they co-op.  That means the risk of cross-contamination from someone's kitchen is huge.

http://www.valleydrive.com/Parent_Participation_BY84.html#guidelines

[ajasfolks2]

Ignorance is bliss until disaster strikes, right?

GGA!!

[notsmart]

They are trying to be too creative.

They need to simplify this list.

Some high risk foods are included, such as homemade breads and baked goods, hummus, pita bread, etc.

[maeve]

They are trying to be too creative.

They need to simplify this list.

Some high risk foods are included, such as homemade breads and baked goods, hummus, pita bread, etc.

It's not a matter of being creative.  There shouldn't be safe snack lists because that's a one-size-fits-all approach to a condition that doesn't have a one-size-fits-all approach to management.   There are certainly PA and TNA families who might find that list perfectly acceptable but there are others who take a more conservative approach either based on their own tolerance for risk or because of their child's reaction history. 

Whatever happened to just having every child bring snack from home?  It worked when I was a kid.

[YouKnowWho]

Ooooh oooh, I know that one Maeve!! 

Because I asked at a preschool that had a shared snacktime and was not willing to tell kids to bring their individual snack because....





















It was not inclusive 

[maeve]

YKW,
Seriously.  Wow.  That's stunning.  How would it not be inclusvive?  Everyone would have a snack except I guess if someone forgot to bring one. 

[YouKnowWho]

I just wondered how she said that to me with a straight face.  She kept reiterating that it was peanut free so it would be safe for my child.  Ummm, my child is not allergic to peanuts - he is allergic to wheat, rye, barley and egg.  (Can't say I didn't run into that with the other school I chose but they had individual snacks because safe lists were dangerous so they half got it, kwim?)

She made this big deal about how the kids were happy to bring in the snacks that week because it made them feel important.  My mental thoughts were how important would they feel excluding children or causing a child to have an anaphylactic episode because if I had put together a safe list of snacks and a parent veered from it because she didn't think my child was that allergic or as a cost cutting measure.

Ugh. 

[maeve]

While my DD is allergic to peanuts and tree nuts, she's also allergic to egg and has had contact reactions to egg.  It drives me nuts that people, particularly those working in schools get so focused on peanut allergy that they do not even acknowledge that kids can be allergic to other foods.

I imagine it's hard for wheat and dairy allergic food because of the confusion with celiac and lactose intolerance, respectively (plus those ingredients are in freakin everything).

[Ra3chel]

While my DD is allergic to peanuts and tree nuts, she's also allergic to egg and has had contact reactions to egg.  It drives me nuts that people, particularly those working in schools get so focused on peanut allergy that they do not even acknowledge that kids can be allergic to other foods.

I imagine it's hard for wheat and dairy allergic food because of the confusion with celiac and lactose intolerance, respectively (plus those ingredients are in freakin everything).

It's not specific to schools.

I put peanut lower on the list on my restaurant cards because people see it and ignore the rest. And I cannot count the number of times I've handed a server or manager my card and promptly been reassured that, oh, they have a gluten-free menu (I'm not allergic to or intolerant of gluten, or wheat, or any grains). This is part of why I ask friends NEVER to investigate the safety of something on my behalf: they'll ask about peanuts and stop there. Every. Single. Time. And then someone thinks they've been sufficiently accommodating and gets deeply offended when, no, I'm not going to try the hummus. 

SORRY KIND OF A PET PEEVE THIS ONE

[notnutty]

I have not read the link because I only have a moment...but we DO use and support safe snack lists FOR OTHER STUDENTS TO CONSUME.

In elementary school it helped keep down the foods my DS was allergic to from being brought to school in the first place.  Parents appreciated the ideas and the snack was never to be shared.

I think safe snack lists do have a valid purpose if they are used an implemented correctly.

[YouKnowWho]

I have not read the link because I only have a moment...but we DO use and support safe snack lists FOR OTHER STUDENTS TO CONSUME.

In elementary school it helped keep down the foods my DS was allergic to from being brought to school in the first place.  Parents appreciated the ideas and the snack was never to be shared.

I think safe snack lists do have a valid purpose if they are used an implemented correctly.

That makes perfect sense and I can see giving great options for others whose children might have preferences that differ from the norm or fit better into their life choices.

I have a small handful of people that I trust to serve the boys and those people understand why I need brand specific products.  I am even grateful when they say they cannot do it because of how they handle their kitchen but could I send a similar treat for the boys to consume. 

[maeve]

That's generally how I treat the list, so there's fresh fruit listed (even though DD has OAS to cantaloupe).  However, this backfires when it's used for planning class parties.  I compiled the list for the class with an eye toward not unduly limiting the options for her classmates that would not pose a risk to her if consumed in class; however, this doesn't mean that fruit salad, cut up veggies, or baked goods would be safe for DD. 

I've also not found that it has prevented items DD is allergic to from making it into her classroom.  (Heck, even a food free class didn't prevent that in first grade.)
 
I see these as a potential source of resentment from non-FA parents.  But then I'm sure they've likely resented us even when they've gone the extra mile to get all safe food for the FA kid and said child ends up eating stuff mom brought from home because the class parents didn't wash their hands before serving kids (and younger sibs had hands all over food without washing hands too).