Someone to watch over her

By ABIGAIL CASPARI in Rotorua
Lunch time at school is deadly serious for 5-year-old Ariana Strawbridge.
A shared sandwich or even a kiss from a classmate could kill her.
Ariana has a life-threatening allergy to peanuts and egg whites.
So each day at Westbrook School an adult supervises Ariana at lunch time to make sure she doesn't eat anything that could harm her.
As well as not being able to eat foods which contain peanuts or egg whites, it is not safe for her to be around others who are eating peanuts, peanut butter or using cooking products like peanut-based oils.
To a lesser extent, she has several other allergies. Cats are a problem, and so are pine trees, dust mites, mould and some varieties of grass.
Ariana has been in Rotorua Hospital three times because of her peanut allergy which was discovered by her parents when she was 20 months old.
Her mother Lisa Strawbridge had used a knife, which still had peanut butter residue on it, to make a jam sandwich for her daughter. Suddenly Ariana was vomiting and her eyes began swelling.
She was rushed to a doctor who realised she was having what is known as an "anaphylactic" reaction to peanuts.
On another occasion Mrs Strawbridge and Ariana were at a friend's home when Ariana began shaking, vomiting, swelling up and her lips turned blue. It turned out the friend had been cooking with peanut oil and Ariana had inhaled some of the fumes.
Ariana has a similar reaction when she eats egg whites.
Sending her daughter off to school was initially difficult but almost a year on and Mrs Strawbridge is no longer too worried.
"There are always the little fears of 'what ifs' but you can't live every day by 'what ifs'."
She has every confidence in the school.
"The school has been absolutely brilliant. It has exceeded my expectations."
At the suggestion of the school a letter was sent out to the parents of the pupils in Ariana's class, asking them not to send their children to school with peanut butter sandwiches. On her first day of school Ariana was introduced to every class.
Her teacher has medication for her if she starts having an allergic reaction, which so far has not been needed.
Ariana's class begins interval five minutes earlier than the rest of the school to avoid any risks of children sharing food.
A teacher aide or a teacher keeps an eye on her for the first 15 minutes of lunchtime when the children eat their lunch.
Some of the foods Ariana cannot eat include muesli bars, biscuits, peanut butter or Nutella sandwiches, icecream, chocolate and most cereals.
Grocery shopping is time consuming as Mrs Strawbridge has to check the label of everything she buys. She knows peanuts and peanut oil in four different languages.
Mrs Strawbridge bakes especially for her daughter.
The family don't often go to restaurants or eat fast foods. While there is food on the menu which Ariana can eat, it's generally not known whether peanut oil has been used in cooking.
"There are some people that probably think I'm some neurotic over-reacting mother but as long as my daughter is safe, they can call me what they want."
Because of her daughter's allergies the rest of the family also have to be careful about what they eat and what sorts of food are in the house.
If Mrs Strawbridge eats a peanut butter sandwich, she has to shower and brush her teeth before seeing her daughter.
Ariana has a raft of other environmental allergies which cause hayfever and skin problems. Her mother says it is unlikely her daughter will grow out of her allergy to peanuts and admits she can't help worrying how she will cope when she is older.