The Food Allergy Network and Anaphylaxis Network is an organization founded by parents of children with very serious food allergies, and it has become a widely respected resource for information on how parents and schools can best deal with children who have food allergies. Their website, www.foodallergy.org, provides a wide range of extremely useful information, including "managing food allergies in school."

Among the topics are how to avoid reactions, tips for parents and school officials, and perhaps most critical of all, an "Emergency Health Care Plan," a form that outlines what actions a caregiver should take in the event of an emergency. Included on the form are symptoms that require action, medications to be given, whom to call, permissions from a parent and doctor, emergency contacts, and -very importantly- the names and locations of school staff who are trained to manage problems of this kind. When parents provide their child's school with this form, it will reinforce the need for all of these elements to be in place.