Allergies Are Out of Control!!
I understand how serious allergies can be. I'm a paramedic, believe me, I understand. I'm usually really understanding about food restrictions in schools and daycares but seriously my son just came home with an allergy list from daycare that includes, I kid you not, FOURTEEN things that can not be brought to his center. And some of the items aren't single items, like "fish" and "shell fish".
Many of the things on the list are staples in my son's diet. Like eggs, and fish. He LOVES salmon and it's good for him. This list grows longer by the week. It's getting to the point that the only thing I can send with him are hot dogs and grilled cheese. Both are foods he likes and I don't mind giving him OCCASIONALLY but, really, REALLY can't become his regular lunches.
Pretty much all of his favorite fruits are out at this point.
He has, at most, SIX kids in his class. I do not get how we just wound up with a list of FOURTEEN things. Most of the kids in his class this year were in his class last year and we didn't have a banned list of fourteen things last year. If this is center wide, including children in different rooms, on different floors, who will never see my son nor play with the same toys, nor play in the same room (and I suspect it is) then I think this is complete bullshit.
I get it, kids with allergies can die if exposed. I've seen it happen. I'm really starting to think, there has to be SOME WAY to limit exposure with out banning a huge list of foods from entire buildings though. From specific rooms, i get but, the whole building? This is insane. Pretty soon kids aren't going to be able to bring any food anywhere and they will all have to come home for lunch.
I'm going to talk to them about this tomorrow. Maybe I'm wrong and there is one poor new kid deathly allergic to fourteen things in his class this year and be more sympathetic about this tomorrow. We'll see.
I'm just SOOOOOOO frustrated right now. I have to be able to feed my child but, I can't just ignore this list if it might kill someone else's.
How is everyone else dealing with this? WHat kind of restrictions are you encountering at school/daycare?
Also, what are these kids going to do when they get out in the real world? They can't control every food in every building they walk in to for the rest of their lives. Do they grow up, graduate from school and move into a bubble? I'm seriously worried. WHat's happening these days? WHen i was growing up, once in a blue moon you ran into a kid with a peanut allergy and that was it. Now it's so pervasive. It sucks. I'm sure my frustration is nothing compared to how the moms of the allergic kids must feel 
Re: Allergies Are Out of Control!!
I worked as a daycare teacher for 3 years and the only thing the schools ever banned was peanuts/peanut butter. If other kids had allergies to other foods they just weren't served those things. That seems a little crazy that they are saying because of another childs allergy, your child can't eat that item.
I also think some parents self diagnose when it comes to allergies, or say that their child is allergic to certain things when really the child just doesn't like the food. I would look into another school if possible. Sucks you have to deal with that!
I feel for you an both sides of the issue. It is never easy to pack healthy and tasty lunches for kids that they will eat. I grew up not able to eat cakes, cookies or cupcakes because of an egg allergy. It really sucks when you see everyone else eat cookies at lunch and all you get are raisins. I guess that is why I now hate raisins.
I completely get peanuts/peanut products thing and shellfish, and latex (although shockingly that hasn't appeared on my son's list YET). Those items can pose a threat to children in the same room even if they don't eat it or touch it.
The rest of it, I have a hard time believing that they have so many kids with life threatening allergies from across the room to so many things. I also wonder if parents are confused/exaggerating their child's issues. There is a HUGE difference between "this gives my child a rash" and "this causes my child to lose his airway and die"
I will definitely talk to them later today.