Food Allergy Programs Help Schools In Five States

FAAN’s School Food Allergy Program, currently already used by 20,000 schools nationwide, gives schools comprehensive information on food allergies and anaphylaxis, along with training materials to help school administrators, school nurses, food service staff, and teachers safely manage students who might experience a reaction while at school.

“This Federal grant is helping us to further fulfill our mission in educating more school administrators on food allergies and anaphylaxis, and the serious consequences of being unprepared for a food allergy incident,” said Anne Munoz-Furlong, FAAN founder and CEO. “We are confident that these training programs will help prevent allergic reactions and save lives.”

More than 11 million Americans have food allergies and about three million children under 18, or one in 25, are affected by food allergies. Research shows that food allergies among children are on the rise, and there is no cure. A recent study published in the Journal of School Nursing showed that 94 percent of the nation’s schools have students with food allergy. School settings can be potentially dangerous as children with food allergies are often exposed to food allergens not just in school cafeterias, but also through classroom celebrations, arts and crafts projects, and math or science projects.

The School Food Allergy Program includes a training video, an EpiPen® trainer, Twinject™ trainer, 2 posters, and a binder filled with more than 100 pages of information and standardized forms. The program was developed in collaboration with the National Association of School Nurses, the Anaphylaxis Committee of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, and the Executive Committee of the Section on Allergy and Immunology of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Letters will be mailed to school principals in the five states, encouraging them to order the program at no cost to the school. Principals, school nurses or administrators can order the program via the FAAN website, www.foodallergy.org and anyone with questions may call 1-800-929-4040 for more information.