coeliac disease in French school

[Berlioz]

Yesterday we had a diagnosis of coeliac disease for our very tiny 11yo. thank god for PPP...   NHS would never have found it this decade as she didn't have classical symptoms. Still in shock really.

We had already found schools (International for our 16yo and French College with british section for 11yo ) and were planning to move next summer to  France and are having intensive french lessons.   (info from forum members incredibly helpful in this quest and choice of final location based entirely on schooling, see my previous postings) Eventually I hope we will move towards a med climate before I cease up all together/am too old to care

We are clearly a family with major auto immune health problems, (I have fibromyalgia which virtually dissapears in summer /dry weather and when in the south of France out of constant drizzle!) so now I am asking forum members if anyone has any experience in the 'problem' health area re schooling/availability of gluten free foods/healthcare etc in France. ( i.e is it possible to take a packed lunch to school?) Our daughter is an incredibly plucky child and is really looking forward to moving to France.

I am currently claiming Incapacity Benefit which will continue in France and enable me, and my dependants to join the French system without too much cost (I think based on the UK Gov web site and searching the health forum) My other half (who is bilingual) will continue to consult to the UK wine industry commuting to London with his Ltd Co. We are planning to swap living in UK  and commuting to France to living the other way round with no mortgage as I am now effectively unemployable as an accountant

I will also post this on the heath forum.

Thanks to all.

Donna

 

 

 

 

[Mistral]

Last year my son had to follow a complete salt free diet. He was in primary school at the time, so we went to the mairie to find out what they could provide. The first answer was that it wasn't possible because the meals were centrally cooked (by a private company) and delivered to the schools to be heated. When my husband asked what people with children with allergies did in this situation, he was told that they either had their children home for lunch or they employed someone to collect and feed the child at their home. He insisted a bit more and finally got the answer that although they couldn't provide meals for us, we could ask for permission from the school to provide meals ourselves (the idea hadn't come to the mairie employees because packed lunches are unknown here)

So we had to contact the school and ask for a meeting with the directrice and the school doctor to set up a PAI (projet d'acceuil individuelisé) which meant we could provide meals ourselves that we had to bring in and leave in the teachers' fridge and the cantine staff would heat up (again no suggestion of a cold packed lunch) in a microwave specially provided by the mairie. We had a long official document about bringing food in in a cool bag so it would stay cold and whether we had to provide our own plates and cutlery (not in our case, but necessary in allergy situations) The whole thing was quite straight forward.

This was in primary school, I would assume the same would be true for a collège. In my collège there is a pupil with "wheat allergy" (I'm guessing coeliac) and I know she eats in the cantine. Apparently her family did a PAI and then checked out the cantine and the menus and she knows what she can and can't eat.

For gluten free foods; my local Géant has started stocking some and most largish towns have a health food shop which stock them. There is also at least one mail delivery company.

 

[Berlioz]

Thank you  Mistral. I just knew it would be more complicated than here!

I  had a word with the Cook at her middle school. They will do salad with no dressing, meat with no gravy,breadcrumbs etc the weekly menu is on their website so I will check it and send in a cold packed lunch on 'Pasta' days.

Some Gluten free products are free on prescription here, I wonder if the situation is the same in France?  I will check out the local supermarkets next time we are over.

 The one thing that has really upset Lydia is she was so looking forward to lovely French bread every day.The gluten free stuff is about £3 for a tiny loaf tasts like cardboard and she won't eat it!

 

[Mistral]

You should try  salt free bread!!

I've found the address for the mail order company http://valpiform.alliastore.com/accueil.asp

Some things have a secu button next to them and they are reimbursed by the health system as long as you are registered as a coeliac patient.

This seems to be the address for the French coeliac association. http://www.afdiag.org/  and this is look like an interesting information site too http://www.maladiecoeliaque.com/

 

 

 

 

[Berlioz]

Thank you for the links Mistral.  I havn't been on the forum for ages and the alerts obviously didn't carry over to the new one so I had not seen your reply. My daughter is doing really well on the gluten free diet.

Even translated through google (my french isn't very good yet) there is a lot of the kind of info I have been looking for.

Thanks again

Donna

 

[Mistral]

If you need anything specific translated, just ask.

 

[Berlioz]

Thanks Mistral that is a kind offer.  I will PM you if I get stuck.

Donna