ESCONDIDO: Responding to reactions

Local teacher urges support of bill to prepare schools for allergies

By GARY WARTH - Staff Writer | Saturday, November 8, 2008 2:08 PM PST ∞

ESCONDIDO --- Alex Kajitani never wants to relive the horror of that night one year ago when he watched his year-old daughter gasp for breath and saw her skin break out in hives.

"It was a horrifying experience," said Kajitani, a teacher at Mission Middle School in Escondido. "She began sneezing and wheezing, and her breath was real troubled. She began clutching at her throat."

Fortunately, Kajitani was prepared. He recognized the symptoms of an allergic reaction, and he quickly gave an injection to his daughter, Senna, to counter the symptoms.

"By the time the ambulance got there, she seemed to be doing better," he said.

Senna had had an allergic reaction to fish. Kajitani knew his daughter was allergic to peanuts ---- and he since has learned she also is allergic to other nuts, sesame, milk and eggs ---- so he was prepared to treat her immediately.

He worries, however, that other teachers will not know what to do if one of their students suddenly has an allergic reaction at school. With cases of food allergies on the rise with children, Kajitani said schools must take the initiative and begin educating teachers now about what to do in case a student suddenly has traumatic reaction to a food.

Last year, he gave a training session to other teachers during a staff meeting at Mission Middle School, and hopes to someday expand the lesson to other schools.

"I could see my role going around from school to school, educating other teachers and administrators, especially the cafeteria workers and students themselves," he said.

Kajitani's schedule got a little busy when he was named one of the county's teachers of the year, and he has not yet had the time to put together the program he had in mind.

A congressional bill, however, has been introduced that could help all teachers learn how to respond to allergic reactions at schools.

Senate Bill 1232, originally introduced by Rep. Nita Lowey, D-N.Y., and already passed by the House, would create voluntary national guidelines to help schools manage students affected by food allergies and anaphylaxis, a life-threatening type of allergic reaction.

Lowey's press secretary, Matt Dennis, said the bill would help schools prepare for times when students have an allergic reaction to food at school.

Among the ways a school can prepare is to have a supply of epinephrine, a hormone that can be injected to counter allergic reactions, Kajitani said.

Kajitani said he was surprised that when he took a CPR and first aid class, it did not include information about epinephrine and how to handle allergic reactions.

"One of the biggest challenges is response time," he said about why it is important to react quickly when a child has an allergy attack. "Response time becomes crucial."

Just as important are steps that can be taken to prevent students from having allergic reactions in the first place.

"Some schools have enacted peanut-free tables and nut-free zones," he said.

An October report by the Center for Disease Control revealed that the number of young people with food allergies had increased 18 percent between 1997 and 2007. Last year, about 3 million American children were reported to have food or digestive allergies, compared with 2.3 million in 1997.

According to the report, 90 percent of all food allergies are caused by eight types of food: milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, soy and wheat.

Kajitani said he and his wife, Megan, are supporting the efforts of the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network, which is asking people to lobby their senators in support of the bill known as the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Management Act.

"I'm not surprised that it's not in play yet, but it's essential that as the number (of students with allergies) grow, we're prepared to deal with these kids," he said.

Contact staff writer Gary Warth at (760) 740-5410 or gwarth@nctimes.com.