School is in!

It’s Back To School Time!!! So this week we are going to continue our kid theme.

What happens when they go to school? Are you concerned about allergic reactions at school? What does your school do for children with allergies? All these questions and more…..

First thing to do is look on the website for the district you are in or are moving to. They should have guidelines on how they handle kids with allergies to food and other allergens. This will give you a heads up and now you know how to plan for your special someone’s school year!

The next thing I would do is approach the counselor and the school nurse. Give them a 3x5 card with your child/children’s picture(s) on it and write down the allergies and how severe they are. I know they have allergy forms you need to fill out, but let’s face it, they won’t remember your kid the second you walk out that door. It’s not their fault; they have hundreds of kids to remember. If they do not accept the 3x5 card, place a picture with the formal allergy form.

At Back to School Night or Parent / Teacher conferences, give each of the teachers the same 3x5 card. This will be a handy tool for them to remember and a quick reference for them. If you really want to be thorough, give one to the lunch lady as well.

So, with all of this said, there are different severities of gluten intolerance. There are the people that have an intolerance, an allergy or Celiac’s Disease. I am one of those ‘fortunate’ ones that just has an intolerance. No itchy skin, hives or such a massive intolerance that I can’t even be in the same room as a gluten product. Yes, that was a little of an embellishment, but not to the people who cannot have any contact with it at all. It is a very important aspect to their lives and it becomes part of their lifestyle.

Next are lunches! I used to LOVE my Mom’s lunches…ok, not all the time. But what kid does? So think of that AND being gluten intolerant. They can’t have the nachos that all the other kids are having, or the hamburger that looks sooooo yummy! Oh and how about that ice cream sandwich to finish it off? Nope, not that either. UGH! What to do?!

Well, here are some simple tricks to getting your kid to have a normal lunch period:

      Find puddings and fun snacks that he / she can eat.

      Most candies like Starburst are gluten free…let them have fun!

      How about chips? Boulder Canyon and Kettle brand chips are both gluten free

      Sandwiches – find one of those plastic sandwich holders. This helps the sandwich stay cool, dry and out of contact with other peoples gluten.

      Fruit – fruit is a wonderful thing! Let them pick new fruits at the store and put them in their lunches

      Veggies – how great are these?! Give them some cut up veggies and a GF dip to go with and they will be the envy at the lunch table!

      And most important of all – give them a little love note inside their lunch….they will love that too!

      Homemade soups are great! Put it in a soup carrier or thermos and they can have soup too!

The nice part about these things is that most of them can be done the night before, Sunday for the week, or right after grocery shopping! You will just have to grab and go! And if you have multiple people in the household, grab two colored plastic bins (two of the same color) and put one in the fridge and one in the pantry so you know that is the ‘special’ bin and not for anyone else!

Be a conscious shopper and enjoy your family! It’s the only one you have!!

Happy Eating Everyone!!!