There is a lot of anxiety about food allergies, however, unless there is a family history of allergy, a food allergy is fairly rare. If your family has a history of food allergy or atopic disease (e.g. asthma, eczema, hay-fever) the risk of developing an allergic disorder more than doubles.

• If possible continue to exclusively breast-feed for at least four preferably six months.

• Do not start weaning until your baby is 6 months old.

• Start weaning with low allergen foods like baby rice, root vegetables, apple and pear.

• Introduce new foods one at a time for 2 or 3 days so that any adverse reactions can be traced to the ‘trigger’ food.

• Avoid high risk foods such as wheat, egg, nuts, fish and citrus fruits until 9 to 12 months of age.

• Avoid cow’s milk and dairy products whilst you are breastfeeding – there is no point in withholding them if your baby is drinking infant formula as she is already being exposed to milk proteins.

• If there is a family history of allergy to a particular food, avoid that food until your child is at least one year old and if you are breastfeeding avoid that particular food in your diet.

• Do not remove key foods from your child’s diet without first consulting a doctor. If you suspect that your child is allergic to a common food such as milk or wheat, you should seek expert advice.

• Children with eczema may react badly to foods such as citrus fruit, tomatoes, wheat, milk and eggs so be careful to monitor the introduction of these foods into the diet.

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