ABC News: health problems, toxic school

[Guest guest]

ABC News aired an excellent story Tuesday, Oct 11th, about a child's health

problems from a " toxic school. " Info below is from these ABC websites:

http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/print?id=1200774 (with excellent quotes from parent of

affected child, Phil Landrigan, MD, tips from reporter)

and http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/AmericanFamily/popup?id=1200792 (what parents

can do)

ABC News: Girl's Illness Traced to 'Toxic' School; Some Doctors Alarmed by

Hidden Chemicals at School

Oct. 11, 2005 - - Kellianne King was a healthy, vibrant little girl until she

started preschool. That's when she started to suffer from headaches, sinus

infections, chest pains and seizures, says her mother, Kathy King.

It was a heart-wrenching time for the family. " She would stand on her bed and

she would just scream, 'You have to -- you have to help me. Someone has to help

me.' And we couldn't do anything, " King said.

And Kellianne, now 13, couldn't enjoy many of the pleasures of being a kid. " I

feel like I didn't get to do much, " she said. " I mean, I can ride a bike and

read a book now but when I was little, I never got to do that. I learned how to

do those things much later. So it was hard. "

No one, it seemed, could figure out what was making the little girl so sick. " We

took her to all the best doctors and they were just perplexed by her, " King

said. " They really just couldn't pinpoint what was wrong, "

Mystery Illness Revealed

When Kellianne was in the first grade, her parents learned the painful truth:

There were serious air quality problems in her school that had sickened dozens

of students and teachers.

" I was shocked that the only place, the only place I trusted to leave her was

what was making her sick, " said King.

Dr. Landigan chairs the Department of Community and Preventative

Medicine at Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in New York. He is one of many doctors

alarmed by hidden toxins in schools.

" Today, too many chemicals are put into schools that have never been tested for

the possible impacts they have on young children, " Landigan said.

Simple leaks can breed deadly mold behind walls and trigger an asthma attack;

pesticides used to kill insects and weeds can damage a child's developing

nervous system, lowering IQ and affecting attention span.

" Children live down on the floor, " Landigan said. " They crawl on the rug.

They're constantly putting their little fingers in their mouths. And all of

those actions increase the child's exposure. "

Alarming School Equipment

Just how quickly kids get exposed to toxins in school became clear when " Good

Morning America " conducted an experiment in a classroom at P.S. 8 in New York.

First, we applied Glo-Germ, a non-toxic powder only visible under ultra-violet

light, in areas where pesticides are most likely to be sprayed or to settle,

like baseboards, windowsills and desktops. Then we invited the kids to play.

After only 20 minutes, we showed them the stunning results.

Using UV light, we found traces of Glo-Germ all over their clothes, hands and

faces.

" It was actually scary to see how germs can spread, toxins can spread all over

the place, " said teacher Olivia Ellis.

Kids spend nearly 90 percent of their time indoors. Yet there are no specific

federal requirements limiting the use of toxins, such as pesticides, in schools,

which is why it often takes teamwork to get a school to clean up its act and its

air.

Berkey is the principal of Hastings Elementary School in Massachusetts,

where Kellianne attended school and was exposed to toxins. " I think families

need to feel comfortable when they send their children off to school that

they're sending their children to a safe and healthy environment, " Berkey said.

That school took action and, nine years later, Hastings is an award-winning

example of a healthy environment school.

A health and safety team, composed of Berkey, a parent, teacher, school nurse

and maintenance technician, regularly inspects the entire school looking for

leaks, dirty ventilation filters and making certain that only non-toxic cleaners

are being used in the classrooms.

" It's a really good feeling to know that if you take a little time out locally

in your schools that the impact can be really far-reaching, " said King.

How far-reaching? Thanks to King and other parents' efforts, every school in her

district has similar toxin-fighting teams, protecting the health of some 3,500

students -- including Kellianne.

" I feel very proud to have a mom that would do that for her kid instead of just

giving up and saying, 'Oh well, I can live with them being like this forever,' "

Kellianne said. " Just fighting. Also, not just for me but for other kids. " --

October 11,2005

Anne Pleshette , " Good Morning America " 's parenting expert, offered some

tips on what parents should do if they suspect toxins or pesticides are causing

an unhealthy environment at their children's school.

If you think your child has been made sick by a toxin at school, get them out

of school and to a pediatrician. You don't want to risk permanent damage.

Not all pediatricians are up to date on these problems. So if your pediatrician

is unclear, and you still suspect that school toxins are a problem, get a

referral.

Find out who is responsible for maintaining school health and safety. You can

also request school inspection records - officials are obliged to give them to

you.

Find out about alternatives to pesticides and other chemicals. There is a

program called Integrated Pest Management that many schools are adopting, which

uses the least toxic approaches to insect and weed control.

If there is a problem, parents need to join together and document everything.

Write letters to teachers, principals, the PTA and other interested parties and

keep copies. For more information, visit the following web sites:

*Healthy Schools Network -Research, advocacy and coalition-building for safer

school environments.

*Healthy Kids: The key to basics-dedicated to promoting a better understanding

of the health and educational needs of students with asthma and other chronic

health conditions

*Beyond Pesticides- formerly National Coalition Against the Misuse of

pesticides, working to reduce unnecessary pesticide use, thus improving

protection of public health and environment.