Risk of peanut allergy can be reduced by 80% by including peanuts in infant diets, study finds

Children at risk of food allergies can be prevented from developing a peanut allergy by including peanuts in their diet from about 7 months of age, findings from a randomised trial have shown.1

Experts described the results as “compelling” and said that the study “makes it clear that we can do something now to reverse the increasing prevalence of peanut allergy.” They added that guidelines, which in the past have advised parents to avoid giving peanuts to children at risk of atopic disease, should be rewritten. In the meantime they have given guidance on how to introduce peanuts into the diets of children at risk of food allergies.

The prevalence of peanut allergy among children in developed countries has doubled in the past 10 years and stands at …