Introducing your baby to allergens

to keep things as simple as possible. If they have a reaction you want to know exactly which food triggered it.
Be patient. It can be messy. It can be helpful to nurse or feed a bit of a bottle have a few small spoonfuls then finish a bottle to make sure they dont cry from hunger. But stop when they seem full like turning away or crying. Dont force eating.
Single ingredient purées are a good option
Start with one food at a time
Start with a small amount
Serve about three to four times a week
Watch your baby carefully for the first few hours after theyve tried a new food
Make foods easy for a baby to swallow puréed mashed softened infant cereals and puréed meats are excellent first foods
Dr. Endris also recommends starting good eating habits early like eating together as a family without screen time.
Its a good idea to be sure your child tolerates a few foods before trying high allergen ones. Then give a small taste of a high allergen food at home. If that is tolerated then can give increasing amounts.
Heres how to introduce some of the common allergen foods safely.
Milk
You can incorporate whole milk into your babys routine around 12 months. However they can be introduced to dairy sooner at that 4to6month mark.
Try introducing them to yogurt or using milk cooked in foods like pancakes and scrambled eggs. That way theyll get the introduction to the dairy allergen without having to drink a bottle of cows milk.
Eggs
Eggs are a great food to introduce your baby to early. Theyre packed with protein and are easy for babies to chew or gum. Babies can be introduced to scrambled eggs between 46 months.
When preparing the eggs make sure that you cook them thoroughly and dont give your baby runny yolks. Start with scrambled or hardboiled eggs. These are often softer and easier for your baby to eat.
Peanut butter
Because peanut butter is thick it can be a choking hazard. Choose a creamy peanut butter over chunky. You can introduce peanut butter around 4 to 6 months. When starting your baby on peanut butter spread a very thin layer on a piece of soft toast or bread. You can also stir in a small amount of peanut butter into baby cereal. Or even water down the peanut butter and give it to your baby to lick a little off a spoon.