New Guidelines Challenge Long-Held Beliefs About Preventing Food Allergies in Children
PARIS – Parents are being advised to rethink traditional approaches to preventing food allergies in their children, as emerging research challenges decades-old recommendations.Recent studies indicate that early introduction of allergenic foods – including peanuts,eggs,and cow’s milk – may actually decrease the risk of developing allergies,rather than delaying them. This shift in understanding is particularly crucial for infants at high risk, such as those with a family history of allergies or existing atopic dermatitis (eczema).
Atopic dermatitis, characterized by dry skin or red, oozing patches, can compromise the skin barrier, increasing allergen absorption.Symptoms of food allergies extend beyond skin reactions like hives and itching, and can include digestive issues (diarrhea, vomiting, constipation, blood in stool, food refusal, abdominal pain) and respiratory problems (discomfort, wheezing, cough, rhinitis, asthma). Specialists emphasize that allergic reactions aren’t isolated incidents: “In case of food allergy, symptoms do not come only once. They repeat themselves whenever the child consumes a food.”
Here’s what parents and caregivers need to know, based on the latest recommendations:
* Prenatal Nutrition: A healthy and balanced diet is recommended during pregnancy, without restrictive dieting.
* Early Diversification: Introduce a variety of foods between 4-6 months of age, including common allergens. The “Elf” study demonstrated that delaying introduction beyond 6 months may increase allergy risk. The “Learning Early about Peanut Allergy” (Leap) study specifically showed early peanut introduction significantly reduced peanut allergy growth in high-risk children and modulated immune responses.
* safe Planning: Allergenic foods like peanuts and tree nuts should initially be offered as butter, crushed, or finely ground to minimize choking hazards. Whole nuts can be introduced around 5-6 years old, when molars develop.
* Hypoallergenic Milk Caution: Hydrolyzed formulas (HPP) remain recommended for children with allergic tendencies, but recent studies suggest hypoallergenic milk (HA milk) – modified cow’s milk – doesn’t reduce allergy risk and may even increase it.
* Cow’s Milk Protein Introduction: The French Allergology Society recommends daily introduction of 10 ml of “1st age milk” to breastfed newborns at atopic risk, to help prevent allergy to cow’s milk proteins.
