Preparing for the Worst: Is Your Child Ready for an Anaphylaxis Event at School?

Teach your kid how to read food labels and ask questions about how food is prepared and what ingredients are used. Sharing foods with friends and classmates must be strictly forbidden. Some kids are so sensitive to peanuts that even being in the vicinity of someone else who is eating peanuts or peanut butter can be enough to trigger an anaphylactic reaction.

If stinging insects are a trigger for your child, then teach him/her how to recognize such insects and where they like to hang out (for instance, fire ants love crumbly mounds of earth and hornets often nest under railings and eaves).

Latex is another allergy trigger. Often thought of in terms of health care workers and the protective gloves they wear, kids frequently come into contact with latex too – in balloons, rubber bands, bicycle handgrips, pacifiers, even rain boots. Make your child aware of all of the sources of latex if he or she is allergic.

Protection: Quick Response Is Essential!

Knowledge is power and prevention is golden, but even so, accidents happen and exposure to triggers will occur -- no matter how careful you and your child are. So, it is absolutely essential to know how to act quickly if anaphylaxis does occur.

First, you, your child and school officials need to know how to spot early signs of anaphylaxis and how to tell the difference between everyday allergy and asthma symptoms and anaphylaxis.

Second, and most important, your child should always have auto-injectable epinephrine on hand wherever she goes, and the syringe should be on the child's person at all times. If possible, keep extra syringes in the nurse's office, at grandparents' homes, at the babysitter's, etc.

Most states have what are called "right to carry" laws now that permit kids to have asthma inhalers and auto-injectable epinephrine with them in school if needed and to use them on their own (without the school nurse). In fact, only Connecticut and South Dakota have no laws along these lines. Vermont has pending legislation and a few states only permit the right to carry asthma medicines, but not anaphylaxis meds. To learn more, visit the AANMA webpage on students and medications in school.

Some parents (and probably some school staff too) are fearful of using epinephrine on their kids. But, it's critical to understand that any consequences of using an injectable medicine (including possible side effects) pale in comparison to the alternative of not treating anaphylaxis immediately. You can't wait to transport your child to the ER; that may be too late. When anaphylaxis strikes, epinephrine must be given right away!

If you, your child, or school staff aren't comfortable with the prospect of administering an injection, then practice is essential. The AANMA booklet has a great tutorial and quite a few helpful tips on how to use epinephrine.

Take note: The best place to give epinephrine is in the front of the thigh and it can be injected right through clothing if necessary.