IT’S a wonder that any of us who were born before the ’80s are still here to tell the tale.

The way health and safety Nazis go on about it, you’d think it was a miracle we managed to survive before the hard hat brigade took over.

A new survey of more than 600 teachers out this week revealed some of the most restrictive rules being imposed in our schools in a ridiculous — and often hilarious — attempt to avoid injuries and lawsuits.

Some of the gems include pupils made to wear safety goggles to handle Blu-Tack, running in the playground forbidden (I’d like to see sports day at that school), a five-page briefing on the dangers of Pritt Sticks and sweets banned in case children choke on them.

In some schools teachers were barred from sending badly-behaved children into the corridor to “cool-off” because of potential fire hazard, and youngsters in one school weren't allowed to use empty egg boxes in art and craft lessons in case they contracted salmonella.

If it wasn’t so funny it would be tragic that our youngsters are having the best years of their lives ruined by people who think you can catch salmonella from an empty box.

Nobody would argue that some rules are needed to avoid accidents.

But blimey, when we’re stopping our kids from eating sweets, getting exercise and being creative, you’ve got to stand back and look at the bigger picture — is it really the best thing for them?

Let’s not forget, people have been getting on all right up until now. Those of us who didn't grow up wrapped in cotton wool are still alive, aren’t we?

I can’t put it better than this piece of writing that has been doing the rounds on the internet: “Congratulations to all the kids who were born before the ’80s.

"First we survived being born to mothers who smoked and/or drank while they carried us and lived in houses full of asbestos.

"They took aspirin, ate blue cheese and didn't get tested for diabetes or cervical cancer.

“Then after that trauma, our baby cots were covered with bright coloured lead-based paints.

"We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, doors or cabinets and when we rode our bikes, we had no helmets or shoes, not to mention, the risks we took cadging lifts.

"We drank water from the stream and the garden hose pipe.

"We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle and no-one actually died from this.

"We ate buns, white bread and real butter and drank soft drinks with sugar in them, but we weren’t overweight because we were always outside playing.

"We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the street lights came on.

“We had friends, and we went outside and found them. We fell out of trees, got cut, broke bones and teeth and there were no lawsuits.

"The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law.

“We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned to deal with it all.”