What about allergies?

The number of children with food allergies has risen sharply in recent years in developed countries like Australia. Finding out why is the aim of ongoing global research. 

The most common foods to cause food allergy in Australia include egg, cows’ milk, peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, fish, soy, wheat and sesame.

We are still learning about the best way to reduce the risk of food allergy in children. For many years it was thought that giving a baby’s system more time to mature before offering common allergy-causing foods would reduce the risk of allergy. Research has since shown this to be untrue.^1,2

Current advice can be summed up as follows:^3-5

• Try to include common allergenic foods in your diet when you are pregnant and breastfeeding. Avoiding them might increase your baby’s risk of food allergy.
• Offer a variety of foods to your baby from around 6 months of age. Foods can be introduced in any order, as long as iron-rich foods are included.
• Common allergens (egg, cows’ milk, nuts, shellfish, fish, soy, wheat and sesame) should be offered in the first year of life, even to babies with high risk of allergy.
• Once a common allergen is introduced, continue to offer it to your baby regularly (at least once a week).
• Introducing these foods one at a time (e.g. only one per meal) doesn't reduce the risk of allergy, but it can help you to identify the cause if your baby has a reaction.
• If your baby is breastfed, continue breastfeeding as you introduce solid foods.

Unless you are allergic to a food yourself, you do not need to avoid eating certain foods during pregnancy or breastfeeding to reduce the risk of allergy in your child.^6,7 In fact, eating these foods yourself could help your baby’s immune system learn how to tolerate them.

Even babies with a family history of allergy should be offered the common allergy causing foods before they turn one. Talk to a healthcare provider if you feel unsure how to do this safely.

If your baby or child already has a known food allergy, they will need to avoid eating that food. A dietitian can help you to ensure your child still gets all the nutrients they need from other foods.

You should only eliminate foods from your own diet while breastfeeding if your doctor or dietitian advises you to. In most cases, the chance of your baby reacting to allergens in your breastmilk is small.⁸ Removing foods from your diet when you don't need to can leave you at risk of poor nutrition.⁶

Children sometimes grow out of food allergies, so ask your doctor if and when you should offer the food again.

Talk to your child health nurse or doctor if you're feeling unsure about introducing certain foods or your baby shows signs of allergy.

There is no good evidence that starting solids early (before the recommended age of 6 months) reduces food allergy risk. It's also important to know that allergy is not the only factor experts thought about when recommending babies begin solids around 6 months.⁹ 

They also looked at: 

• the nutrients babies need to grow and develop well
• how much of these they get from breastmilk
• what happens if a baby has too little breastmilk
• the signs that suggest a baby is ready for more than milk.

People sometimes think the risk of illness from formula or food that has not been prepared safely is only a problem in developing countries. However, research shows that breastfeeding protects the health of babies in developed countries, like Australia, too.¹⁰ This is another reason why it's best to wait until around 6 months before offering your baby foods other than breastmilk.

Introducing solids from around 6 months, offering a range of common allergy-causing foods before their first birthday and continuing to breastfeed your baby can help to reduce their risk of food allergy. 
 

© Australian Breastfeeding Association June 2026