Allergic to School?

Back to school for kids means getting new clothes and supplies, seeing old friends and hoping the teacher will be "cool." For children with allergies, the fall season - and possibly school itself - also can bring an array of symptoms, such as sneezing, runny nose, itchy eyes, headaches and hives. These children, and their parents, can manage back-to-school hazards with good planning, communication and awareness, say experts at National Jewish Health.

"Allergies that are properly treated should not keep these kids from doing what any other kid can do," says Michelle Freas, R.N., Coordinator of Medical and Health Services at the Kunsberg School on the National Jewish Health campus. Kunsberg is an accredited school that educates and treats chronically ill students in kindergarten through 7th grade whose medical conditions made it difficult for them to attend regular school consistently.

Solve the mystery. "Be a detective to find out exactly what may be causing allergies at school. Ask questions and don't jump to conclusions," says Freas. "Talk to the teacher, the school nurse and, if necessary, the food service people."

Inform them of your child's allergies. Discuss any conditions that might be a problem, and try to work out solutions." If your child has never had allergies before and suddenly comes home from school with symptoms, "Find out what he or she was doing just before the reactions occurred," Freas advises. "If it's not a cold, it's probably allergies-especially if someone else in the family has them."

Classroom pets. If your child develops allergy symptoms while at school, consider the classroom pet as a potential cause. Furry animals such as gerbils, hamsters, rabbits and guinea pigs, are wriggling balls of allergens for kids who react to animal hair. "Children may already know they're allergic to cats and dogs, but they don't think about these other critters," says Freas.

"If the kids and parents get to vote on what pet they want, choose a reptile or fish. Those are fine in a classroom." Kids can also monitor their own reactions. "Don't volunteer to feed the gerbil, and if you touch it, wash your hands afterwards," Freas suggests. "Choose a desk on the other side of the room from the animal cage."

Field trips. Allergies should not exclude any child from field trips. "We take our kids to the zoo!" Freas says of the more than 90 children with allergies and asthma who attend classes at Kunsberg. "We just have to know who has a problem and what to do about it. For severely allergic kids, we take their medications with us." However, a petting zoo for small children may cause flare-ups because children actually touch the animals. "Keep the teacher informed," Freas suggests, "or volunteer to go on the field trip."

Homework, tests and friends. A child's allergies should not be an excuse to avoid homework. "There shouldn't be any problem completing homework," says Freas. "If a child has an allergy attack, he or she might be crabby and irritable, but that's not an excuse." Someone with a severe case of hives who has been highly medicated may get drowsy, but in general, homework, grades and test performance need not suffer.

The same goes for friendships and socializing. "If you take your medications you should be able to do almost anything your friends do," Freas says. "We do not excuse behavior due to asthma or allergies here. I wouldn't expect any less from regular school. These kids have to live with their allergies and manage them. Otherwise, chronic illness has control over their life instead of the child controlling the illness."