Israeli Allergy Experts Say Bamba is Safe to be Allowed Back In Schools

ISRAEL (VINnews) — An Israeli medical agency with an expertise in allergic reactions is advising schools not to ban allergenic foods.

The Israel Association of Allergy and Clinical Immunology is advising the educational system to allow allergenic foods into schools, which would reverse a yearslong policy of prohibiting foods that could provoke an allergic reaction in students.

As reported in the Times of Israel, the association, a subgroup of the Israel Medical Association, explained that the prohibition was based on two assumptions that they believe have been proven incorrect.

The first is that serious or anaphylactic reactions can occur if an allergic child either smells or touches the food they are allergic to. The second is that keeping the allergy-triggering foods out of the school will reduce the chance of allergic reactions.

The association released a paper stating that “international allergy associations (in the US, Europe, and Australia) have published position papers in recent years advising against keeping allergenic foods out of schools and kindergartens (except for very young children or children with developmental delays).

“The Israel Association of Allergy and Clinical Immunology recommends adopting the international approach and not applying across-the-board bans on allergenic foods in all schools and kindergartens,” the statement continued.

According to, children with food allergies are not at risk of a severe or systemic reaction just from smelling or touching a food they are allergic to — except for fish.

In a recorded message to the media, association chair Dr. Arnon Elizur said that the paper had been released to let parents and children know what they need to be afraid of, and what not to fear, with the school year set to begin.

“Children who eat a food they have an allergy to can have a serious reaction. This can lead to legitimate and understandable fears. As the father of two children with food allergies, I understand this fear very well. However, children with food allergies will not react to smelling or touching an allergenic food. These actions will either not provoke any response at all, or will cause a minor skin reaction,” Elizur said.

“In other words, if someone eats an allergenic food near them, there is nothing to be worried about — either at home or outside the home. If the child does not eat the food they are allergic to, they will be fine. This knowledge will give them power over their allergy and self-confidence,” he said.

Yahel, the organization representing children with food allergies and their parents, oppose the new recommendation.

“If someone thinks that we will abandon our children to the jungle known as school and kindergarten in the Israeli education system, they are either naive or dangerously disconnected from what’s going on,” a Yahel representative was quoted as saying.

Dr. Mona Kidon, director of the pediatric allergy clinic at Safra Children’s Hospital at Sheba Medical Center, told The Times of Israel that she supports the conclusions of the Israel Association of Allergy and Clinical Immunology’s paper.

“However, as with everything in medicine, there may be extremely rare cases in which there are children who could potentially have a severe systemic allergic reaction to a minimal exposure from, for example, playing with a ball or toy that was touched previously by an allergen,” Kidon said.

“But these are very rare individuals and can be recognized and advised by their allergist. This should not influence the general recommended policy,” she emphasized.

The article concludes that in the meantime “It remains the parent’s responsibility to do their part in keeping a child with food allergies healthy in all settings. This means regular checkups with an allergy specialist and giving the child’s school an official letter explaining the child’s food allergy and how to recognize and deal with an allergic reaction.”

“Schools should have an EpiPen on hand, but a parent should also supply one for their child and make sure staff knows how and when to use it.”