new thinking on breastfeeding & allergies

[uoducks]

Hi,
saw this article in Babytalk magazine.

Old Thinking: Breastfeeding moms should avoid eating allergenic foods such as peanut butter and eggs.
New Thinking: There's no clear evidence that what you eat while nursing affects your child's allergy risks.


also.....

Old Thinking: Soy-milk formula can prevent allergies.
New Thinking: Soy milk has no benefit when it comes to allergy prevention (and soy protein is itself allergenic). A better choice? Hypoallergenic or hydrolyzed formulas, which, research shows, may offer some protection against allergies, though breastfeeding is still preferred.

Old Thinking: Hold off on giving all tykes allergenic foods (such as nuts, egg whites, wheat, corn, shellfish, and citrus fruits) for at least one year, and possibly three if there's a family history of food allergies.
New Thinking: The only reason to wait beyond the first six months to introduce potential allergens is if there's a family history or your baby has had a previous allergic reaction. (But still watch for choking hazards.)

You can view it at http://www.parenting.com/article/Bab...-1206729725518

[Sparkle1896]

Good stuff. Thanks mamma!

[Rosella]

My pediatrician actually mentioned these new findings to me recently. Interesting stuff!

[joy7s]

Thanks for sharing!! I wasn't avoiding things anyway (bad mea I guess!!

[jesshb]

For me personally, I still avoid introducing peanut butter and strawberries to my babies. I want them to be able to communicate to me verbally that something is wrong, you know?

Plus, my daughter never had a reaction to strawberries so I gave some to my ds two weeks ago and it gave him massive diaper rash.

Thanks for the links mama.

[Shawna in CA]

Hm. I'm not sure I believe this stuff just yet. My 4 month old was fine until I started eating LOTS of peanut butter sandwiches out of laziness, and now she's got eczema patches all over the place. In fact, I'm having her doctor give her a RAST test tomorrow to see if it's the nuts, the wheat, or both, or what.

If her test comes back 100% negative for food allergies, then I'll be more inclined to believe the new way of thinking.

Not arguing with the original poster, who is just the messenger, I'm sort of arguing with the article in the magazine.