[hbrown22]

The pediatrician said you shouldn't give peanut butter until age 2. Awhile back, I accidentally gave Jake a peanut butter cracker but didn't realize it until after he ate it. I thought the recommendation to wait was based on possible allergies. Yesterday I gave him a pb&j sandwich for lunch for the first time. Just a thin spread and he was fine. I told DH when he got home from work and he disagrees with me that it is ok for him to have peanut butter before he is 2. He is 18 months. Do you know the reason why you are supposed to wait and is it bad that I gave it to him? I thought it would be fine since he had no reaction to the cracker. Pb&j sandwiches are just so convenient plus he likes them so......what do you think?

[sfalone]

I always thought it was based on allergies also. I give Dulce pb&j sandwiches all the time and she is also 18 months old. Never had any issues with her nor Marco whom I also gave pb to before the age of two.

Stacy

[w8ting4Thomas]

Thomas eats PB&Js (when he is not being a finicky little rat!!!). No issues with him...I thought it was due to allergies...

[CEB]

I do think its allergies - and its my understanding if you wait until 2 they are less likely to have or develop allergic reactions to peanuts. We actually decided to wait until 3 and in the interim are using sunflower butter (or soy butter which we bought by accident but he seems just fine with) as an alternative sandwich option.

[curt'sgirl]

Heidi,
I was giving peanut butter at 1 year old. She loved it and still eats it all the time. Peanuts and tree nuts can cause anaphylaxis with some susceptible children - usually occurring within two hours. Always check for a rash around the mouth or hives after starting any new food. In any case, I always mixed the peanut butter in a bowl with some unsweetened applesauce to thin it as I heard it could cause a choking problem if too thick.
Nancy

[052001]

My oldest daughter had a severe allergies to milk, egg, & wheat so her ped suggested we give her peanut butter to get some protein. I think we started giving her PB at 1 or 1 1/2.

Soy butter is a good alternative. I give soy butter to my 2 yr. old because peanuts are banned at daycare.

You can ask your pediatrician if you are concerned.

Here is an article:
When Can I Give My Child Peanut Butter?

[SKL]

I have heard conflicting arguments on this, just in the past year.

On the one hand, if you don't expose your child to something little by little as his immune system is developing, he doesn't have a chance to build up defenses against it and this could lead to allergies.

On the other hand, with some substances, there is a belief (I don't recall ever reading they have proven it) that early exposure is so aggravating to some that it actually creates an allergy.

Now, most likely there is no "one rule" for every possible allergen. It is currently believed that early exposure to dust is great for babies (yeah!) while I haven't heard an "ok" on eggs before age 1 yet (though they were feeding my daughters eggs in Guatemala).

Personally, I just started very gradually with peanut butter around their first birthday. They LOVE IT and they have never had any kind of reaction. Within a month or two I threw caution to the wind as far as nuts go (though I do cut up hard nuts because they are a choking hazard).

On the other hand, I am in no hurry to introduce seafood - I haven't done any research on it, and I don't care to serve it at home, so I avoid it rather than risk an incident in a restaurant.

[JustBarbara]

Interesting - my ped suggested introducing DS to peanut butter - spread v thinly and see if he has a reaction. This was around 18 months and he's had no issue with it. At daycare they serve the toddlers scrambled eggs sometimes at breakfast and sometimes fish - again around 18 months and my ped said it was fine just avoid tuna until he's a little older.

[DeeVee]

Different peds will say different things about when to introduce certain foods. With our first child, our ped told us that once Gabriel turned 1 year old, he could eat anything we were eating, with the exception of things that could cause choking (like raisins for example). So we gave him peanut butter, eggs, fish, whatever we were eating, and he's been fine. Done the same with our other kiddos that followed.

On the other hand, my nephew does have a peanut allergy, and the first time he had PB was after he turned 2, so the theory about holding off because early exposure could lead to an allergy doesn't make sense to me.

Since your son has already had PB a couple times without any reaction, he probably doesn't have an allergy.

[w8ting4Thomas]

Others have mentioned eggs and, even fish...Our DS was also eating eggs in Guat at 6-7 months and by the time he came home at 9.5 mos, the FM told us how much he loved fish. I couldn't believe that one, but sure enough we went out to eat shortly after being home and DH had a white fish filet...Thomas ate most of it! I was amazed that at 10mos he would eat that!

[jennandsteve]

My kids ate peanut butter early too. I read a study recently about the increasing allergies here and it pointed out what someone above already said that by not slowly exposing kids to things it may increase the chance of allergies. I think people now say having pets from a young age decreases chance of asthma and allergies. In asian countries where peanut and peanut sauces etc are used alot there are apparently very very few peanut allergies. I thought that was interesting too.

[sheababy]

It is for allergies. I gave DD some by accident also. She is 19 months but we are going to wait until 2 years to give her PB sandwiches. It probably is over cautious but I figure what's a few more months?

[dance_muffin]

Mollie has been eating PB&J since 15 months; in fact all of my kids are big PB&J eaters (me and DH included). I read an article recently that suggested pregnant women not eat pb because it might cause allergies in children??! I lived on pb during all of my pregnancies and none of my kids are allergic to pb or anything else for that matter.

Another article I read reported a study of children who live on farms have little to no allergies. Their systems are so exposed to many things; wheat, animals, dairy etc. they don't develop them. That makes alot of sense to me.

[Mariais5]

Most of our Guatemalan children are exposed to Lord only knows what while in Guatemala.. My girls both came home drinking Coke and loving most table food.. They were both eating fish and peanut butter by the time they were one.. At two and three, they love oysters and sushi!

We do have friends with children who have major peanut allergies, and it can be very dangerous if your child is allergic.. They have to choose which restaurants (those who don't use peanut oil) they are allowed to take their children to, etc.. So, I would be cautious, but kids love peanut butter.. :-)

[joshsmom]

My husband's Aunt is an RN and used to teach CPR courses. She will not give a toddler PB because of allergies and because it is a very hard (if not impossible) substance to clear from the throat if they are choking because it is so sticky. As a result, our DS still has not had PB and he is 2.5 years old. He will have plenty of time to eat PB when he is a little older. He eats a wide variety of food that most 2 year olds won't eat and gets plenty of protein from other sources so I don't see the need to take the chance of him choking. He has had peanuts in other items so I'm not concerned with him having allergies.