September, 2010

Dear Parent or Guardian:

Your child’s diet request for juice to be substituted for milk due to lactose intolerance cannot be continued due to a change in USDA regulations.

The reason for this change:

USDA, the governing agency for the National School Lunch Program, issued a rules change concerning milk substitutes (such as juice or water) for students with non-disabling conditions. The new regulation applies to students without disabilities. Lactose intolerance does not meet the definition of a disability in the USDA programs. The regulation recognizes the valuable contribution of milk to a child’s diet and therefore, does not allow a school to offer other beverages, such as juice, to substitute for milk in the school meals program. We will however provide Lactaid milk for all students with lactose intolerance.

What if my child has a serious allergy to milk? What steps do I take to obtain a diet modification
for my child?

If your child has a disability that falls under the Americans with Disabilities Act (such as a milk allergy, which may result in anaphylaxis), a diet order from a physician is required. These orders from a physician, for disabling conditions, must answer a series of questions in order to be implemented by the school division. The diet order must:

• Identify the disability
• Explain why the disability restricts the child’s diet
• Address the major life activity affected by the disability
• List the food or foods to be omitted from the child’s diet and the food or choice of foods that must
  be substituted.

When a child has a disabling allergy to milk, diet orders typically will include all potential sources of milk in the student’s diet, not just fluid milk (that is cheese and milk by-products such as casein or whey).
 
Please don’t hesitate to call the Child Nutrition Office with any questions.

Cathy Alexander, R.D., SNS
Executive Director, Child Nutrition Programs