"Food Allergy Bullying- How To Spot If Your Child Is A Target And Actions To Take" - Janet French
Over the past eight years, researchers have begun to look more closely at food allergy bullying after hearing stories from children with food allergies and their parents. Definitions of bullying vary, but children say they’ve been taunted, teased, threatened and, in some cases, had life-threatening allergens thrust in their faces, or even slipped into their food surreptitiously. In his New York clinic, Eyal Shemesh, MD, co-director of EMPOWER program at the Jaffe Food Allergy Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and chief of the division of behavioral and developmental health at the Mount Sinai Health System, asks all his patients with allergies specific questions about their experiences with other children – “Does anyone give you a hard time about your allergies? Who did you tell?” Gathering details are an important step toward tackling the problem. Schools need to create a culture of safety where students are encouraged to report any threatening behavior, said Dr. Shemesh – it’s not ‘tattling’ if a classmate is at risk.
- Eyal Shemesh, MD, Professor, Pediatrics, Behavioral Pediatrics, Psychiatry, Co-Director, EMPOWER Program, Jaffe Food Allergy Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Chief, Division of Behavioral and Developmental Health, Mount Sinai Health System