St. Louis schools adopting no-peanut plan

Published: Sept. 16, 2007 at 4:13 PM
Order reprints
ST. LOUIS, Sept. 16 (UPI) -- Schools across St. Louis have capitulated to a growing national trend toward banning peanuts from school grounds as a safety precaution.

With area schools such as Rock Creek Elementary School instituting a strict no-peanut policy, education officials are attempting to make schools safer for children with peanut allergies, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Sunday.

"It sounds goofy, but to these kids a peanut butter sandwich is like a loaded gun," Rock Creek Principal Deanne McCullough said. "Their lives are already impacted so much. At school, they can at least have that part of their life be normal."

A 2006 report from the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network said fewer than 1 percent of all school-age children are allergic to peanuts.

But with parents and school officials unable to create an effective-yet-non-restrictive policy regarding the simple food, many U.S. schools have begun banning peanuts altogether. A study involving 1,200 nationwide school districts found 18 percent had banned the nuts to ensure students' safety, the newspaper said.


© 2007 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.



Iranian cleric calls for clearer laws (4 min)
Swine flu kills healthy patient (7 min)
Critics: Honduras suppressing broadcasters (14 min)
Treasure hunters search for meteorite (16 min)
Study: Lottery money isn't everything (26 min)
MLB: San Francisco 8, San Diego 0 (36 min)
MLB: Arizona 8, Florida 0 (43 min)
fark
Emergency evacuation of 747, pants before or after noxious odor spilled into cabin
Iran condemns Italy for "violent suppression of justice-seeking protesters by the Italian police"...
Only the Royals would consider Yuniesky Betancourt a 'major trade'. Second paragraph- 'Betancourt,...
Probably the most spectacularly disturbing suicide you'll read about today
Photoshop these creepy earrings
Patronizing Tijuana hookers while on drugs may be unhealthy, according to Dr. N.S. Sherlock, of...