Is this one of the worst wrong turns in the history of parenting advice? Telling people to delay the age they start their babies on solid food might be contributing to the rise in food allergies.
Babies used to be given their first solids when they were around 4 months old. Many start showing an interest in the food their family is eating around this time, as well as developing a larger appetite. But since the World 午夜福利1000集合 Organization published a report about a decade ago saying that babies should be exclusively breastfed until 6 months, countries like the UK and US have recommended parents hold off until then.
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Not all UK parents follow this 6-month rule but healthcare staff and all tend to give out this advice. NHS leaflets and warn parents that if they start weaning earlier than 6 months they must avoid potentially allergenic foods, like peanuts and eggs.
Yet this is at odds with the latest research and advice from allergy specialists, says Elissa Abrams of the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada, in a review published this week. Several studies now suggest that, to avoid developing food allergies, it鈥檚 better for babies to be exposed to food from 4 months old. A trial published this year, for instance, showed the best way to avoid an allergy to peanuts 鈥� one of the commonest food allergies 鈥� is to give them to babies from .
Surveys and observational studies have suggested it could be beneficial for infants to encounter wheat, egg and cow鈥檚 milk from an earlier age, while there are also concerns that delayed weaning could cause anaemia, due to .
Time to change?
One criticism of the WHO stance has been that it is more relevant to developing countries, where babies who are breastfed for longer are less likely to be exposed to contaminated water while they are at their most vulnerable. In developed countries, the risk of this is very low.
But scientific thinking has changed too. Pregnant women used to be told to avoid eating peanuts, until a showed that this actually increased the likelihood of their babies having a peanut allergy.
Is it time to change weaning advice? Despite her paper, Abrams sticks to the official Canadian Pediatric Society line to hold out until 6 months 鈥渂ecause of the benefits of breastfeeding for babies and mothers鈥�.
And that could be the heart of the matter 鈥� the weaning question may be being distorted by efforts to raise breastfeeding rates. Because the official line is that babies should be given nothing other than breastmilk, rather than formula, for the first 6 months of life, telling parents they can give solids during this time could dilute this message. 鈥淏reastfeeding in the UK is so politicised that weaning has become drawn in,鈥� says one researcher who did not want to be named.
Different advice is given by some other expert groups. The European Food Safety Authority says weaning at 4 months is fine. The British Dietetic Association says that while parents should aim for 6 months they should as different babies have different needs. 鈥淪ometimes they鈥檙e starting to grab food out of your hand before six months,鈥� says dietitian and BDA spokesperson Tanya Thomas. 鈥淎s a parent you know when they鈥檙e ready.鈥�
We will know more later this year, when the results from that addresses exactly this question will be published. In the meantime, perhaps new parents should be informed of the questions hanging over the 6-month rule. They鈥檙e not babies, after all.
Journal reference: Canadian Medical Association Journal,
