State and local lawmakers urged to add specially trained canines to disabilities regulations
Article Source: msnbc.com
from:msnbc.comAllergy-sniffing service dogs keep kids safe
Seeded on Thu Jun 9, 2011 11:04 AM EDT (msnbc.com)
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The harder we try to keep people safe who would never otherwise have survived to pass on their genetic material, and the harder we try to get infertile couples to reproduce who otherwise would have been removed from the gene pool, the more future generations will suffer. I am not without compassion for these people, but I am also not short sighted about what modern medicine has wrought on our future.
Allergies were almost non-existent until the last 100 years, and have been on a steady climb since then. All of the weird chemicals we use, and the fact that we try to raise our children in super-sanitized bubbles have created this problem.
There are genetic components to developing Allergies, but this is mostly a pollution and lifestyle issue. You may not be without compassion but you are without knowledge on the subject at hand.
Not to mention many lesser allergies aren't really allergies at all - I used to get all sniffly and sneezy in our old basement and I was told it was because I was allergic to dust. I later found out myself that was complete BS and that dust just does that to people (it was a very dusty basement). I wonder how many people get a little sniffly in high pollen seasons and say they need to be medicated for "allergies" when all it is is your body's natural reaction to a freaking ton of pollen in your nose?
DavesPlanet
Help me understand how allowing people with allergies to live and reproduce is bad for the future of mankind, being that it's easily treatable.
The biggest threat to mankind is humans that don't have much compassion. Remind you of anybody?
Davesplanet. I hope you find your own planet and stay on it. Don't worry. My allergic kid won't ever go there. Why would she waste a second of her life next to an uncompassionate and uninformed person like you?
Having allergies sucks! And no, she wasn't raised in a bubble. And no, I am not a clean freak who disinfects every surface I find. She played in the dirt, was raised in a house with two dogs, has a yard with plants and garden... yada yada yada. The whole nine yards of all the crap they say raises healthier kids. Oh and yes, she was breastfed for a year. I consider her one of the lucky ones. At least she has no life threatening food allergies. I know several kids with life threatening allergies and it isn't a lifestyle choice. My kid just developed the kind of allergies that prevent her from living a normal life. How dare you judge who should be allowed to be saved with medical help and who shouldn't! You know who thought like you? Hitler and his cronies. Feel you are in good company yet?
How do you know allergies are inherited?
Dave, your words will come back to bite you. Odds are really good that eventually there will be someone in your life you care about that will develop allergies. Not all people are born with them. Or you might be the lucky winner. Did you know that people have been known to develop allergies after surgery, medical treatments, accidents etc?
What I'd like to say would fill several pages but I shall resist. Actually it's more of an issue that you are not worth my time. You say you are not without compassion, yet you previous words reveal the opposite. Did you think this through before you put fingers to the key-board?
So, DavesPlanet, God forbid you should come down with a life threatening illness, should we consider your genes faulty and just let you expire, or would you want any possible treatment available to try and help cure you?
Bottom line, Davesplanet, is that it is not your child. If it were, I suspect....no, I truly HOPE....that your attitude would change. Hoping that it will change otherwise is clearly not going to happen, but at the very least I can hope there will be a revelation for you if it is a child you love.
While I agree that too many people are kept alive who do not wish to be (often for good and sufficient reasons) simply because we now can, this does not apply to a child, or even an adult, with a simple food allergy.
The ability of these dogs is FANTASTIC and I have mentioned them in seemingly non-related threads. Remember the BABY that was searched by TSA because an explosive was supposedly detected? That story led to other people describing very similar situations that they had endured. One mother theorized it was something in the diaper wipes (I hate to think about the chemicals in them, but that's another story). I suggest that ALL major airports have these dogs. Not only will they prevent our strip searching by an over-powerful agency, but the lines will move much faster. And there is no way that a dog would mistake a diaper for a bomb. No pun intended.
I, too, suggested dogs a long time ago when the body scanners were first mentioned. (My question was, who was making money off the scanners, and how was this company related to a person who voted for the scanners in our government/Homeland Security)
There are so many ways that K9s can be used. If trained properly, they are a great investment, can't be bribed, are totally loyal, will work for love, and the only retirement plan they are interested in is to die by your side.
Great story!
Oh Joy -- several years ago, I went through screening, and in talking to the security guard, I found out many women test positive (or did then) because something in hand lotion triggers the 'bomb' detector they used (a wipe of some sort). I bet the baby had baby lotion on.
DavesPlanet--You have an interesting take on the matter. If you think the gene pool gets messed up by including people with allergies and offspring from formerly infertile couples, perhaps your own suitability should be reconsidered. There are numerous people out there without allergies and all-too-fertile who should not be reproducing. If you have nothing better to do on a weekday afternoon, watch Judge Judy a few times and you'll know what I mean. As far as allergy sniffing dogs are concerned, they can provide an invaluable service; however, I can see people taking this to an extreme and insisting that the kid who gets a runny nose when the wind blows needs to take his dog to school.
These dogs have to be certified as "Helper" dogs, and a doctor has to certify that the child has an extreme life threatening medical condition that requires the assistance of the dog.
So your concern about the runny nose and Scooby-Doo needing to go to school can be put to rest.
Allergies can be, but aren't always, inherited. Children of parents with allergies are more likely to develop allergies than children of parents who are allergy free. I'm not saying I agree with Dave...but that's a fact. And like you said allergies can also develop at any time for many reasons.
As far as know, no one in my father's family (including him) or my mother's family (including her) had allergies. I came along and darned near died until someone figured out I was an 'atopic' - I spent my first 18 months of life on soy milk and oatmeal. I still suffer from food allergies, but usually only if I eat too much of a certain type (like grapefruit. Fruit of the Gods. Or whole wheat bread. Or eggs.) But if I eat in moderation, I seem to do OK. Well, except for the lactose intolerance. My kids have my predisposition toward hay fever, but that's about it. So, I'm not sure how your inherited allergies work.
The only problem I see is my son has a severe allergy to pet dander. Why should this child's allergies trump my child's? I do everything I can to not put anybody out when it comes to his allergy. Now I have to tell my child he can't play ball because someone else's allergies trump his?
Will your son die if he is exposed to pet dander?
Oh and by the way he is adopted, so it really doesn't matter whether it's "Genetic
or Inherited". He still should be able to do the same things as every other kid. Where does it stop, special leagues for every different allergy?
I know a lot of people allergic to pet dander. They are able to take an allergy pill. Do you keep your son from visiting his friend's homes because of his allergy?
Are your really that petty?
@ screminmimi, my daughter has, among many other kinds, an allergy to pet dander. Pills don't usually help. She is mostly allergic to cats but some types of dogs as well. Yes, it does keep her from visiting peoples homes if they have pets. An exposure of a few minutes can make her sick for the next several days. It is a common misconception that allergies can be completely suppressed with allergy medications. While it works for some individuals, it doesn't for many others.
@peachy, I feel for your son, I really do. My daughter is in a similar boat. But I've long ago found out that most people don't give a hoot about people with allergies. Especially when they are not immediately life-threatening. Allowing a kid with a 20K dog to 'sniff' the bleachers is good PR. Accommodating kids like ours is an inconvenience. My daughter has so many allergies that we eventually decided to homeschool her because she came home early every day. And that's on the days she was able to go to school at all. If your child is that allergic to pet dander I bet he isn't able to go to school either. Pet dander on the clothing of my daughter's school mates was a big problem for her.
It doesn't matter what we do. Allergies affect not only the sufferer, but also those who deal with that individual. There will always be some who are willing to step out of their comfort zone to help, there will be those don't help on principle (the 'I-don't-give-a-@!$%#-don't-inconvenience-me' type) and then those who, for reasons of their own, can't help. As a mother of a severely allergic individual I've stopped asking for consideration or help. We homeschool now, her health has improved 95%, and yes, at times, because of the allergies we are restricted as to our activities but no one can say we bother them or ask for favors.
I think you need to consider, mothers, whether having your child accompanied everywhere by his service dog, giving this child's allergy such a visible presence and preoccupation in your child's mental life really might be promoting a whole different kind of disability. By giving him a service dog you are saying there is a disability. Do you want to raise this to a level of such constant consideration? For whose benefit, yours or the child's? People with peanut and many other allergies have long functioned successfully, without the need for the allergy to assume such huge psychological and practical dimensions as part of the child's self definition. Who knows what the consequences of that might be?. Of course you have to be careful and use good common sense. I would hope any parent who embarks on this choice has at least considered the issues with the child's doctors.
Go back and read the article again. You've missed where it says the severity of these allergy attacks and the number of allergic children has increased over the years, and they don't know why.
If you don't have a child you've had to rush to the emergency room wondering if you're going to make it in time to save that child's life, then you don't have a dog in this fight..... as the saying goes.
Screminmimi, Right On! Oh, and these dogs are beyond the average price - $10,000-$20,000 will make most folks think twice -- UNLESS it is a matter of life and death, as peanut allergies frequently are. So, I think if my child had that kind of allergy, and I could give him that kind of dog (and believe me, dwemdwa I'd find the $$$) I'd worry far more about his remaining alive than about some nebulous mental health issue later in life. Service dogs are there to save lives, not look cute on the end of a leash!
This is a great idea. One thing...If you're looking for a dog that will being going to school etc., maybe something less gaudy than a St. Bernard? A dachshund could do the job with much less distraction.
But, St. Bernard's are so cute;-)
Actually, what about the breed of dog the President has? Aren't they 'allergy proof'?
rainlady, no such thing as allergyproof or hypo-allergenic when it comes to dogs. There are lower allergen dogs like Bo, the Portugese Water dog.
The Potential to have allergies is genetic. According to my daughter's immunologist, there is a gene that's inherited that is known as atopy. Inheriting this gene gives you the potential to have allergies, eczema and/or asthma. You can exhibit all or none and any range of severity of any or all, due to environmental factors.
So, for those who think that allergies mean you have "defective" genes, you should check your family history to ensure that no one in your family has eczema or asthma as that would indicate that your family also has this "defective" gene. And, also keep in mind that a lot of people with atopy, never exhibit allergies, asthma or eczema, so your whole family could have it without any symptoms.
I am concerned about bringing the dogs to school and work. I am an asthmatic, allergic to anything with feathers and fur. Yes, antihistamines help some if you are out of the environment that triggered the response, but if you remain in the environment for long periods of time, the efficacy of the pills and/or allergy shots diminishes. At the end of the article it described a person who had brought the dog to work due to their paprika allergy. This then triggered the allergies of a second person, as the second person was allergic to the dog. The person with the dog has filed a complaint with the EEOC. How will this case be decided? The only outcome I forsee is choosing one person's right to their health over the other. Does that mean that my work environment will no longer be safe for me, should a co-worker have a problem? Would their rights trump my rights? Or would this be decided on a seniority basis, the employee who held the job first getting preference for their needs.