Learning About Preventing Food Allergies in Babies

When your baby has a food allergy and then eats that food, your baby's body reacts as if the food is trying to cause harm. So your baby's body fights back by setting off an allergic reaction. A mild reaction is no fun, but it isn't dangerous. A serious reaction can be deadly.

Foods that are more likely to cause an allergy are also called food allergens. These high-allergy-risk foods include:

• Milk.
• Egg.
• Peanut.
• Soy.
• Wheat.
• Tree nut.
• Shellfish.
• Fish.
• Sesame.

Allergies tend to run in families. Your child is more likely to have a food allergy if other people in your family have allergies, such as hay fever, asthma, or a food allergy.

Your baby may also be more likely to have food allergies if they already have allergy symptoms. Some of these symptoms include a rash or itchy skin, a stuffy or runny nose, sneezing, coughing, or wheezing.

You can help prevent food allergies by giving your baby food allergens when they start having solid foods at 4 to 6 months. Waiting to introduce these foods may increase your baby’s risk of developing food allergies.

There are many baby-friendly types of food you can use to start introducing your baby to all of the most common food allergens. Here are some examples.

Introducing food allergens in a certain way can help keep your baby safe. Keep these feeding tips in mind for before, during, and after giving your baby foods that have a high allergy risk.

• Wait until your baby is ready to start having solid foods. Your baby may be ready if they can hold their head up, seem interested in food, seem hungry after breastfeeding, and don’t push food out of their mouth.
• Give foods that have a low allergy risk before giving foods that have a high allergy risk. Low-risk foods include proteins, vegetables, iron-fortified cereals, and fruits.

• Avoid choking hazards, such as chunky peanut butter or shrimp cut into round pieces.
• Offer foods in forms and textures that are developmentally appropriate for your baby.
• Offer small portions. Just 1 to 2 tablespoons of a new food is often enough for your baby to try.
• Make nut or seed butters thinner with breast milk or formula.
• Give one new food at a time. Try giving a new food with a food your baby has had before. This is true for foods with a low allergy risk and foods with a high allergy risk. For example, after your baby has had applesauce, give them tahini mixed into applesauce.

• Call 911right away if your baby has any signs of a serious allergic reaction, such as:
  • Hives spreading over the body.
  • Swelling of the face or lips.
  • Vomiting more than once.
  • Coughing or wheezing.
  • Becoming very pale or limp.
  • Having inconsolable crying.
  • Seeming to be unusually sleepy or hard to wake up.
• Contact your baby's doctor or seek medical care if your baby has mild signs after eating a new food, such as:
  • A small rash.
  • Fussiness.
  • Loose stools.
• Wait at least a few days before giving a food that has a high allergy risk. This lets you identify and eliminate any food that causes an allergic reaction.