Why you might want to introduce your baby to peanut butter

Approximately 2.5 million Canadians have at least one food allergy, furthermore peanut allergies affect 2 in every 100 children. In addition, 1 in every 2 Canadians know someone with a serious food allergy (Food Allergy Canada, 2015).

As a dietitian I get a lot of questions as to why there is a rise in food allergies. However, we don't have a great answer to that question because it can be due to a variety of reasons including, environmental influences, our highly hygienic environment, the timing and introduction to foods etc.

I came across this great article on how to give babies peanut based foods to help reduce allergy risk. Recent studies found that early introduction to peanut based products reduced the risk of children developing peanut allergies by age 5. I myself run infant nutrition groups and encourage moms/dads to introduce peanut butter at 6 months of age. Click here to read the full article and get some great ideas on early peanut butter introduction.

Happy Friday! :)

Until next time,

Eat Right Feel Right - Angela XO