A group of British scientists decided to study the relationship between the introduction of nuts in children’s diets after verifying that the number of people allergic to nuts was very low during a conference in Israel, a country where children begin to eat nuts at a very early stage. , around seven months of age. While in the United Kingdom, for example, children never introduce nuts into their diet before the first year. After studying the phenomenon, they were able to conclude that giving babies nut creams at six months would prevent 77% of allergies.
In cases where the introduction of nuts was delayed until the first year of life, the reduction in allergies was only 33%. However, Mary Feeney, one of the authors, clarified that the introduction of these foods does not mean that breast milk should be abandoned.
“Both are compatible,” said the expert, quoted by El País.
Feeney advised parents to give babies three teaspoons of peanut butter three times a week or introduce peanut butter into milk and recommended that these types of foods be incorporated naturally and not as a medicine. In addition, she left a warning: children should not eat whole or chopped nuts to avoid the risk of choking.
Graham Roberts, from the University of Southampton, showed the potential to implement this change in the UK based on the results of the study.
“Every year around 13,000 children develop a nut allergy. By introducing nuts to the entire child population at six months of age, around 10,000 children would be prevented from developing nut allergies each year,” explains Graham Roberts.
Finally, the study authors added that “in countries where nut allergy is a concern, health professionals should help parents introduce nut products into their children’s diets between four and six months of age.” old”.
Source: TSF
