Disclosing food allergy status in schools: health-related stigma among school children in Ontario

Abstract

In 2006, 3 years after the tragic death of 13-year-old Sabrina Shannon, the Province of Ontario (Canada) passed Sabrina's Law ushering in a new era of focus and concern for severe food allergic children at risk of anaphylaxis. Questions were raised at the time regarding the potential of doing more harm than good with the new legislation. This paper reports the experiences of health-related stigma among food allergic children at risk of anaphylaxis who were required to disclose their health status under this new legislation. In 2008, in-depth interviews were conducted with 20 children and youth and their parents in order to explore the experiences living with a severe food allergy. This particular study explores their experiences of felt and enacted stigma in the school setting as a result of the disclosure process. Interviews were tape recorded with permission and transcribed for subsequent thematic analysis using NVIVO, a qualitative analysis software package. Results indicate that participants were stigmatised as a result of protective school policies under the law, and that created tension between their physical safety and social well-being. Sabrina's Law also led to a cultural shift in awareness of food allergies that resulted in some participants normalising their health status, offering promising directions for the future.

Peanut allergy as a family project: social relations and transitions in adolescence

“…, Dean et al . ). The adolescents in our study had experienced school trip to restaurants where they could not tolerate the food as, for example, peanuts are common ingredients of Asian, Chinese and Mexican cookery.…”

Qualitative research in teen experiences living with food‐induced anaphylaxis: A meta‐aggregation

“…The third synthesis shows teens are enmeshed in social and political contexts that affect their experiences living with FIA. One excluded study from Ontario, Canada described the unintended effects of a school policy requiring disclosure of allergies in students: despite normalizing FIA, it also labelled students, making them subject to bullying and stigma (Dean et al., ). The policy thus highlighted how the artificial divide between physical/medical health and social health creates conflict, reflecting the central struggle in our review that many teens faced in managing perceived risks.…”

Exploring the Concern about Food Allergies among Secondary School and University Students in Ontario, Canada: A Descriptive Analysis

“…Previous research has identified particular groups who are more concerned than others, namely, females, older adults, recent immigrants to Canada, and those with lower levels of education [1]. Others have examined the management and experience of risks from the perspective of food allergic children [3, 4] and adolescents [5] and other vulnerable populations including low income families [6] and recent immigrants [7, 8]. …”

“…Following the enactment of Sabrina's Law [15] in 2006, all publicly funded elementary and secondary schools in Ontario are mandated to train and educate staff about the risks of allergic reactions and are accountable for the management of pupils with severe (i.e., anaphylactic) allergies. However, there is evidence to suggest that while fatal allergic reactions do occur in schools [16], policies are more lenient in high schools in comparison with elementary schools [4] and that there is a relative paucity of support for food allergic individuals at the postsecondary level [17]. The result is that youth and young adults are interacting with foods in increasingly risky places with respect to the control of allergens and treatment of allergic reactions.…”