Top tips for introducing the common allergy causing foods
Once your baby has started eating, it is recommended that you start offering them the common allergy causing foods
Offer the common allergy causing foods that your family usually eats, as once introduced, it is important to keep offering these foods at least once a week.
Soon after your baby has started eating solid foods, offer peanut and well-cooked egg (unless your baby already has an allergy to these foods). The other common allergy causing foods can then be offered.
To help you offer the common allergy causing foods to your baby, we have put together some helpful tips.
General tips
- Start new allergy causing foods when your baby is well.
- This is so that any signs of your baby being sick are not confused with signs of an allergy reaction.
- Start new allergy causing foods in the morning.
- Health experts recommend offering new common allergy causing foods earlier in the day so you can monitor for any delayed reactions. It is also recommended that the new food is offered soon after your baby wakes and not just before putting them down for a sleep. This will allow you to watch for any signs of an allergic reaction.
- Offer your baby the common allergy causing foods one at a time, such as one new food at each meal.
- By introducing only one common allergy causing food at each meal, it will make it easier to identify the problem food if an allergic reaction occurs.
- Minor redness around the mouth is most often due to irritation and is not usually due to an allergic reaction to the food.
- Babys have sensitive skin and therefore a mild rash can develop around their mouth when eating.
- A barrier cream can be used around your baby’s mouth before feeding to help reduce redness.
- If your baby has a mild rash around the mouth and no other signs of an allergic reaction it is not usually an allergic reaction.
- If you are unsure, it is best to seek advice from your doctor as children can develop vomiting and skin rashes for other reasons that are not allergy related.
- My baby does not like the taste of new foods.
- Babies often screw their face up when they start a new food, as they are getting used to the taste.
- Keep offering the food to your baby so that your baby learns about new food tastes.
- If you baby is still not wanting to eat the food, give the food a break and offer it again a week or two later.
Offering food to your baby
Tips on how to offer peanut
- Make sure the food is the right texture for your baby’s eating stage. Learn more about Food Ideas and Recipes.
- First foods should be smooth progressing to having some soft lumps.
- Mix smooth peanut paste or a small amount of powdered peanut butter into a food that your baby is used to eating. This could be mashed or pureed meats, vegetables, fruit, baby cereal or yoghurt.
- Start with a small amount (such as a quarter of a teaspoon) and increase over the next couple of days until they are eating around 1-2 teaspoons or more.
- Watch for signs of an allergic reaction. If you think your baby is having an allergic reaction, stop feeding your baby peanut and seek medical advice. Learn more about What to do if you think your baby is having an allergic reaction. Keep introducing the other allergy causing foods.
- If there are no signs of an allergic reaction, keep offering peanut at least once a week.
Tips on how to offer egg to your baby
- Make sure the food is the right texture for your baby’s eating stage. Learn more about Food Ideas and Recipes.
- Mix well mashed or pureed hard-boiled egg into a food that your baby is used to eating. This could be mashed or pureed meats, vegetables, fruit, baby cereal or yoghurt. You may need to add some water to the egg when mashing it to get the right texture.
- Start with a small amount (such as a quarter of a teaspoon and increase over the next couple of days until they are eating around ¼ of an egg or more.
- Watch for signs of an allergic reaction. If you think your baby is having an allergic reaction, stop feeding your baby egg and seek medical advice. Learn more about What to do if you think your baby is having an allergic reaction.
- If there are no signs of an allergic reaction, keep offering egg at least once a week.
- Recipe ideas can be found in the Nip allergies in the Bub recipe book.
Tips on how to offer wheat to your baby
- Make sure the food is the right texture for your baby’s eating stage. Learn more about Food Ideas and Recipes.
- Offer iron fortified, wheat-based cereal mixed with breast milk, milk, fruit or infant formula. Some other suggestions include bread, cous cous, pasta (pastini), depending on the texture your baby is managing.
- Start with a small amount and increase over the next couple of days depending on your baby’s appetite.
- Watch for signs of an allergic reaction. If you think your baby is having an allergic reaction, stop feeding your baby wheat and seek medical advice. Learn more about What to do if you think your baby is having an allergic reaction.
- If there are no signs of an allergic reaction, keep offering wheat at least once a week.
- Recipe ideas can be found in the Nip allergies in the Bub recipe book.
Tips on how to offer cow’s milk to your baby
- Standard infant formula are based on cow’s milk, so if you are using standard infant formula, you are already feeding your baby cow’s milk.
- Make sure the food is the right texture for your baby’s eating stage. Learn more about Food Ideas and Recipes.
- Offer plain full fat yoghurt on its own or mixed with fruit, or a small amount of plain full cream cow’s milk with cereal.
- Start with 1 tablespoon and increase over the next couple of days until they are having around 2 tablespoons of yoghurt or ¼ cup of milk on cereal, depending on your baby’s appetite.
- Breast milk or infant formula should be your baby’s main drink until they are over 1 year of age. Cow’s milk can be mixed into foods (for example pureed or mashed fruit) or occasionally offered in small amounts from a cup.
- Watch for signs of an allergic reaction. If you think your baby is having an allergic reaction stop feeding your baby cow’s milk and seek medical advice. Learn more about What to do if you think your baby is having an allergic reaction.
- If there are no signs of an allergic reaction, keep offering yoghurt, cheese and milk in foods at least once a week.
- Recipe ideas can be found in the Nip allergies in the Bub recipe book.
Tips on how to offer tree nuts to your baby
- Make sure the food is the right texture for your baby’s eating stage. Learn more about Food Ideas and Recipes.
- Mix smooth tree nut pastes or a small amount of finely ground tree nuts into a food that your baby is used to eating. This could be mashed or pureed meats, vegetables, fruit, baby cereal or yoghurt.
- Start with a small amount (such as a quarter of a teaspoon) and increase over the next couple of days until they are eating around 1-2 teaspoons or more.
- You may wish to offer your baby one tree nut at a time.
- Once you have offered more than one tree nut, you may want to make a tree nut blend to make it easier to keep offering them to your baby.
- Watch for signs of an allergic reaction. If you think your baby is having an allergic reaction, stop feeding your baby that tree nut and seek medical advice. Learn more about What to do if you think your baby is having an allergic reaction.
- If there are no signs of an allergic reaction, keep offering tree nuts at least once a week.
- Recipe ideas can be found in the Nip allergies in the Bub recipe book.
Tips on how to offer sesame to your baby
- Make sure the food is the right texture for your baby’s eating stage. Learn more about Food Ideas and Recipes.
- An easy way to introduce sesame is to offer your baby hummus that contains tahini (sesame paste).
- Watch for signs of an allergic reaction. If you think your baby is having an allergic, stop feeding your baby sesame and seek medical advice. Learn more about What to do if you think your baby is having an allergic reaction.
- If there are no signs of an allergic reaction, keep offering sesame at least once a week.
- Recipe ideas can be found in the Nip allergies in the Bub recipe book.
Tips on how to offer soy to your baby
- Make sure the food is the right texture for your baby’s eating stage. Learn more about Food Ideas and Recipes.
- If your baby is eating ordinary bread, then they are probably already eating soy.
- Other ways to offer soy to your baby is to mash tofu until it is smooth and mix it into fruit or vegetable purees.
- Watch for signs of an allergic reaction. If you think your baby is having an allergic reaction, stop feeding your baby soy and seek medical advice. Learn more about What to do if you think your baby is having an allergic reaction.
- If there are no signs of an allergic reaction, keep offering soy at least once a week.
- Recipe ideas can be found in the Nip allergies in the Bub recipe book.
Tips on how to offer fish to your baby
- Make sure the food is the right texture for your baby’s eating stage. Learn more about Food Ideas and Recipes.
- Tinned salmon, tuna or cooked boneless white fish can be pureed or mashed and mixed into vegetables or offered as a finger food.
- Watch for signs of an allergic reaction. If you think your baby is having an allergic reaction, stop feeding your baby fish and seek medical advice. Learn more about What to do if you think your baby is having an allergic reaction.
- If there are no signs of an allergic reaction, keep offering fish at least once a week.
- Recipe ideas can be found in the Nip allergies in the Bub recipe book.
Tips on how to offer shellfish to your baby
- Make sure the food is the right texture for your baby’s eating stage. Learn more about Food Ideas and Recipes.
- Try crabmeat or prawns, steamed, mashed and mixed with pureed vegetables. Whole prawn as a finger food. Flaked crab meat as a finger food.
- Watch for signs of an allergic reaction. If you think your baby is having an allergic reaction, stop feeding your baby shellfish and seek medical advice. Learn more about What to do if you think your baby is having an allergic reaction.
- If there are no signs of an allergic reaction, keep offering shellfish once a week.
- Recipe ideas can be found in the Nip allergies in the Bub recipe book.
