Preventing Allergies in Infants : What Foods to Introduce and When (October 2020)

Food allergies have become increasingly common over the past several years among children in the United States (Comberiati et al., 2019; Sicherer et al., 2017). Food allergies are a negative immune response occurring in the body after eating a specific food (Sicherer et al., 2017). Unlike food intolerances, such as lactose intolerance which causes uncomfortable symptoms in the stomach and intestines, allergic reactions to food can cause a wide range of serious and sometimes fatal symptoms (Konek and Becker, 2020). Food allergies can affect a child's health and quality of life, while also impacting their caregivers' lives (Sicherer et al., 2017). This fact sheet reviews causes of food allergies, recommendations for preventing food allergies, suggestions for introducing potential allergens to infants, and signs of an allergic reaction.