I see people use the excuse “but what if they’re just going so they don’t have to pay attention!” a lot, and it’s a really poor excuse.
Aside from the fact that kids (and adults!) need and are entitled to regular mental breaks, keeping a bored kid in the classroom isn’t going to magically make them pay attention. What it IS going to do is create an environment of distraction for the people around them. You wanna know how I know? I was that kid. I have adhd, and when I wasn’t able to get up and walk around, I talked to everyone. Constantly. When allowed to go outside and refresh my brain when needed, I became a lot less disruptive.
And when it’s older kids? If a high schooler doesn’t want to learn something, they’re not going to, and you can’t make them. That’s their mistake to make. As a teacher, try making the material more accessible and engaging. That’s your job. Whether the student does their job is on them.
“Kids have died in bathroom fights” is definitely an argument I haven’t seen before, but it’s so patently ridiculous that I don’t think it needs to actually be addressed.