Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/812811
welcoming to students who are diverse in a different sense. "Our children take the importance of this to heart," says kindergarten teacher Jill Reddy. "ey know their friends won't get sick, and they feel positive about it." "We don't want any kids to feel isolated, different or singled out," says third-grade teacher Susan Huls. F i f t h - g r a d e t e a c h e r J u l i a J o h n s o n b e l i e v e s t h e p o l i c y h e l p s s t u d e n t s develop positive character traits. "Our stu d e n t s h e re a re l e a r n i n g t o l e ra n c e , empathy and compassion. Going without peanuts is not a big deal for them . The most important thing is that other kids feel comfortable and safe." R E S E AR C H P R O VI D E S H O P E When Noah Ibarra was 1, his mother intro- duced him to new foods, including a dab of peanut butter. His face and lips swelled and he cried out in pain, so she rushed him to the hospital. She was told by the doctor that the first reaction is usually less severe than subsequent reactions. The family lives in Brisbane without a peanut-free school in the vicinity, and Nicole Ibarra worries what will happen when her son, age 20 months, attends public school. "As a parent, you just want your child to have a normal, healthy experience growing up and not feel like an outcast," says Ibarra, who works in the mental health field. "You don't have a separate table for students with ADHD, other disabilities or behavioral problems, but kids with food allergies are singled out. Other parents don't get it and complain about the inconvenience of hav- ing to pack a lunch without peanut butter, but it's really a small request to go without something that might kill another kid." Research offers hope for prevention and managing the condition. New guidelines from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases recommend giving small doses of food with peanuts to infants, in consultation with a pediatrician, to pre- vent allergy. In a recent Stanford University clinical trial, peanut-allergic individuals were given increasing amounts of peanut powder that desensitized some to the aller- gen. ose who experienced success were asked to eat a small number of peanuts every day for the rest of their lives. Treatment with oral immunotherapy actually changed th e DNA of patients' immune cells, and future studies will show whether the DNA change will be passed along to their offspring. "I'm hoping there will be a cure some- day," says Ibarra. "But until then, we need to be very, very careful." Nicole and Noah Ibarra Kindergarten teacher Laura Ishibashi says her students are diligent about keeping Arroyo Vista free of peanut products. Pairing ideas for your own lunch, or to let parents know a few alternatives to the PBJ Cashew butter and apple butter Cream cheese and jelly Tahini and tomato jam Almond butter with stronger berry jellies like raspberry, or with pumpkin butter Madeline Wong, allergic to peanuts, is happy Arroyo Vista Elementary is peanut free. Source: Food52.com (which also has instructions to make your own nut butters without a recipe) Pairing ideas for your lunch, 21 April 2017