Question: I know I shouldn't start most solid foods until my baby is six months old. But there is a bunch of stuff I have to avoid until he turns one or two, right?
Answer: Not necessarily. Once upon a time, we told parents to wait to introduce many foods until at least age 1 (peanuts, strawberries, eggs and cow’s milk for example.) The thought behind this was that waiting until later to introduce such foods, might prevent food allergies. Well, in case you hadn't heard, a couple years ago, these recommendations by the AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics) were changed. Why were they changed? It was not that we found that introducing these foods sooner prevented allergies (though there is some evidence leaning this way). But after reviewing the research, the AAP didn’t find any evidence that delaying introduction to such foods beyond 6 months prevents the development of allergies either. There were other recommendations pertaining to children at high risk for developing allergies—namely that for such children, exclusive breastfeeding or use of hydrolyzed formulas in the first four months might prevent eczema, cow’s milk allergy and wheezing in childhood.
There is still one food off limits—Honey! Never give this to a child under the age of one because of the risk of Botulism, a potentially serious infection.
I know I’m loving these new recommendations for Drummer. He’s a big fan of a little PB on a spoon and it's an easy way for me to get a little extra protein/good fat in his diet. Since he's under doctor's orders to gain a little weight, eggs and PB are quite useful. So if you've got a little one six months or older, make sure to talk to your pediatrician or family doc about the new ways you have to entertain your baby's palate. :)
**Always check with your doctor to make sure your own families' allergy history doesn't alter these recommendations at all.**
Go here for a more detailed report.
Where do I begin? I don't know what you would say if you had my children as your patients. Who knows what you would have done as their pediatrician, especially with Adam.
ReplyDeleteFor what it's worth, now having four children with food allergies, and two not even being my own, I don't think introducing a food earlier or later would have made any difference at all. I agree with trying things whenever the baby is ready. Honestly, I think my kids came with their allergies. The first night after Adam was born I was up every hour on the hour with him. That was when I knew something was wrong. I remember praying about breastfeeding before he was born and receiving a very strong "NO!" Now I understand why! I probably would have killed the kid. There were definite signs with Owen and Lydia too.
Crazy thing is, while I was pregnant with Adam, the foods he's most allergic to are the foods I detested the most. I could not eat dairy or eggs to save my life.
We definitely follow the honey rule, although I thought it was two years old not one, so thanks for the info!
Love the pictures of the kids! Thanks for keeping them front and center.
ReplyDeleteRenae, I was thinking of you when I wrote this post! I should have you do a guest post about allergies. I agree with you that your kids would've had their allergies regardless. I think the new recommendations just drive home that we still don't really know much about preventing the rise of allergies that we're seeing. But you are definitely one of the 'high risk for allergies' family's that would've warranted guidelines of its own! You are amazing at handling them all.
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