Is It Time for Peanut Butter?

My pediatrician said it used to be 12 months, now some dr.'s recommend waiting until 3 years, others say 3 years if there is a family history of food allergies. He told me he gave his kids (who are older now) PB at a year. I chose to give it to mine at a year but watched them for any reactions and as Nicole S. points out, spread the PB thin--large gobs of it are a choking hazard. I don't know what I'd do without peanut butter. My kids eat it almost every day. =)

if she's 2 then she can have peanut butter....but intro duce a little at a time just in case of allergy....=)

Updated

if she's 2 then she can have peanut butter....but intro duce a little at a time just in case of allergy....=)

I gave it to my son at 13mos. We have no family history of food allergies on either side, so I wasn't that concerend about it.

No problems, and he loves PB&J!

Everything I have read about it being related to allergies says that there is no proof that omitting pb until age three will do anything besides possibly give your kid a peanut allergy. Unless you have a family history of peanut allergies, I see no reason to wait. Keep an eye on her because it can be a bit sticky and with a big bite with bread could be a choking issue, but I'm sure she'll love it and be fine!

Hi There,
Most pediatricians say 2 years old. However, our daughter's pediatrician said it is OK to introduce it to them earlier, once in a while. The problem with peanut butter, isn't that most kids are going to have a bad or sudden reaction to peanuts if they have it too early. The problem is that peanuts have an enzyme that can be difficult to digest for babies and young toddlers, so what is happening with the big rise in peanut allergies is related to the fact that so many toddlers are picky eaters and parents are letting them eat peanut butter sandwiches ALL the time because it is easy and kids will eat it. Over time, some kids will build up a resistance to the enzyme in peanuts and develop peanut allergies. So, at first just don't over do it. I started introducing a little bit here and there around 18 mos., and started letting them have more around 2 years of age. My kids love it, and so do I... great source of protein. But I make sure not to give it to them everyday, as variety is important too.... both of my kids go to nursery school/daycares that are peanut free anyway, so they don't get it on the days they are there. I personally think that people/schools have become paranoid about the whole peanut allergy thing... but I don't have a kids with a peanut allergy (thank god! I couldn't live without it). Just start slowly to make sure they don't already have an allergy or develop one.

Our allergist said that if your kid is not an allergic child and your family is not, it is OK to introduce peanut butter spread THINLY on things at age 2. Otherwise, they say to wait until 3. Obviously if you do have an allergic child or household, I would say not at all. Our daughter is peanut allergic.

Keep in mind that you do not want to get your child "hooked" on only eating pb&j either as many preschools and elementary schools are going peanut free. Keep a nice steady stream of variety in the lunch menu to avoid battles later on!

Best wishes!

I believe that the AAP now recommends age 3.

We had no history of allergies in our families so my son had a peanut butter ball at Christmas when he was a little over 1 years old and he was fine. It's hard to tell with others.

Those recommendations always change. My Pediatrician said that now all foods are permitted after 12 months. I'd suggest keeping a watch on how your child might react. Also, spread the PB thin, it's harder to eat than other foods.

Mine were getting tastes of pnut butter well before they were a year old. There's always an exception to the rule but the majority of us are not allergic. When in doubt just do what your pediatrician suggests.
Honey was the one thing that I know you arent supposed to give to little ones since it's not pasteurized. Part of my family was raised on a farm and drank raw milk straight from the cow and are all healthy as horses....go figure?

The peanut allergies are pretty rare. If you dont have a history of it in your family I'm sure it will be fine.

Our doctor said two was the age but that was a couple of years ago. Your pediatrician will have the latest recommendations.

our pediatrician said that without a family history of allergies, it is safe to give at any time. he said that introducing it earlier doesnt increase or decrease the risk of allergy, it is just about being able to communicate that something is wrong, so if you give it to a baby, they may cry if their throat was itchy, but you wouldnt know why they were crying so you might miss something. if your child is able to communicate to you that something is wrong and you dont have a family history of nut allergies, my pediatrician would say that you are safe, but it is best to speak with your pediatrician to be sure. good luck!

I held off till after they were 2 my son was probaly older but he did have things made with peanut butter init my daughter hates PB&J my last daughter she is 20 months dad was watching her & he was cracking nuts she ogf course wanted some so as ahe forgot he gave them to her she had no reactions at all i'm sure it wasn't a handful of them.So I waited a few days to offer her a PB&J she likes it.It wasn't alot of peanut butter jsut enough for a taste.
However i'm on WIC & they don't offer peanut butter on her pckage till she is 2 yr old due to choking hazard & allergies.

My son was eating it some where between 12 and 18 months. He loved it on crackers (same thing with cheese spread). There's all kinds of conflicting information now. Some European doctors say avoidance for several years can increase sensitivity to certain foods when they are introduced later on. It seems you can build up an allergy or build up a tolerance and the rules are different for everyone.

We have no history of peanut allergies in my family. As a child I was allergic to almost everything except peanuts though. We were not introducing peanuts until 2 yrs old, however we ate peanut products around my son all the time and he even had some foods that were manufactured on equipment that process peanuts (by accident) Well...despite that, my son was exposed to peanuts before he was 2 years old at school - I did not know they were following a rule of it being ok after 1 year, where I was following my pediatricans advice of not before 2 yrs. For weeks I couldn't figure out WHY my son was coming home with puffy eyes...we were going CRAZY and well we found our answer the hard way...at 18 months he had a SEVERE reaction. I won't go into the long story of it but all I can say is under the circumstances of it all that we are VERY LUCKY that nothing more serious happened. We did wind up in the ER though! With that being said, I belive our allergist and pediatrician has upped the years and are now saying not before 3 maybe even 4 since there is such a HIGH incidences of peanut allergies these days with no known reason on why such and increase. I'd ask your pediatrician what they recommend b/c its not worth taking the chance b/c then you'll have to go to the allergist and have them tested (stuck with a need or blood test!) to confirm if there was a reaction and then guaranteed you will need an epi pen and benadryll everywhere you go AND you will have to join the rest of us allergy moms in dililgent prevention of another reaction and its not and easy place to be in. How old is your daughter anyway? You didn't mention that. I can suggest however a peanut alternative - SUNBUTTER. Its an all natural sunflower seed spread that is completely peanut free and to be honest with you WAY BETTER than the normal store bought peanut butter in my opinon. Check it out. My regular boring old suburban shop rite carries it now! Yippie! My 3.5 yr old hasn't really eaten it but I eat it ALL the time now!

http://sunbutter.com/

P.S. I was told that once a reaction is had that all subsequent reactions will only be worse...being that my sons reaction was so bad, and the allergiest won't even bother testing him for years to find out if he's outgrown it, I really don't want to see anymore reactions. Just something to consider if you do decide to give it and theres a reaction...somethings my friends have done was to just put a spot on their child face/lips b/c if theres going to be a reaction there will be one with just a little, rather than ingesting it and having a worse reaction.

FOR ANYONE WHO THINKS PEANUT ALLERGIES ARE PRETTY RARE, ID LIKE TO TELL YOU THAT THEY ARE NOT. JUST AMONGST MY FRIENDS ALONE THERE ARE THREE OF US WITH BOYS WHO HAVE PEANUT ALLERGIES - all around the same age, and in the classroom there are at leat 3 - 5 kids per class that have it, so I'm not sure if where you live is just not as densely populated or something but from where I am, peanut allergies are not all rare!

Found the exact same question on the Skinny Scoop so here are a few more responses you can check out:

http://www.theskinnyscoop.com/question/q/2325?utm_campaig...

My pediatrician has never mentioned holding off until a certain age. My son had peanut butter crackers around 10 months and I recently let him try a peanut butter sandwich (He'll be 1 next week). We do not have peanut allergies in our family so I wasn't too concerned about giving it to him.

My pediatrician recommends not giving peanut butter before the age of 3, along with a whole long list of other potential choking hazards. Could you try cream cheese and jelly sandwiches instead? I know how hard it is to get some toddlers to eat - they get fixated on certain foods (I vividly recall the chicken nugget and french fry years in our house!) and aren't always open to trying new foods. My doc always told me that it was my job to put food in front of my children (a variety of healthy choices), but not my job to get them to eat it - they will eat when they're hungry and stop when they're full, if we let them! My doc also said you need to offer a food several times at this age before you can determine if the child really likes it or not. I wish I'd listened a little better to this advice when I was a young Mom - looking back now it makes perfect sense, but my instinct was always to FEED my kids and make sure they ate well at every meal, instead of letting them learn their own body cues for hunger and fullness. But I digress! I'm not sure what others will say, but for safety's sake I would hold off on the PB till your child is a little older - for now, stick to things that are not associated with being a choking hazard.

We gave it at a year to both of our kids. We have no history of allergies in our family. The kids were fine. I would just start with a small amount (a couple of PB crackers) the first time and watch to see if she's sensitive to it. Even if she was, it likely wouldn't be an anaphalactic response, but an upset tummy the first go-round.

Happy eating!

I gave it to my son when he was around 16 months because I knew he wasn't allergic (he had allergy tests done for other things and it showed he wasnt allergic to any nuts). Just be sure to spread the peanut butter THIN so he doesn't choke. I do the pb&j on toast b/c I feel like toast is more likely to help scrape the peanut butter down his throat with all its toasted nooks and crannies so it doesn't lodge there ;)

Hi. If you want to find out if your girl has an allergy, instead of giving her a sandwich with peanut butter where she'll take a big bite at once, put some on your finger or a little spoon and have her try it. Changes are if she's allergic, she'll have a reaction right there, even to a tiny amount of peanuts. This past halloween, my daughter got her hands on a little butterfinger candy, and I had no idea it had peanut butter in it, she ate it and I was watching her and freaking out inside, looking at her very closely. She was fine, so I know she's not allergic (she's 2.5 now), but if your daughter is, you'll see signs like hives primarily on the belly or trouble breathing. Usually these will show between minutes to 2 hrs of eating the peanut butter. You should be ready to react in whatever necessary way if you had to, if you decide to try giving her pb. I also think that waiting until later does not reduce the risk of allergies, if the kid is allergic it'll be allergic whether at 2 or 6 yrs old, so it doesn't really matter. I also heard multiple times that kids that haven't been exposed to certain foods for many years develop allergies to these foods more likely than kids who have been exposed to them when they were babies. It's like their body builds up an immunity to the food, and then they're ok. Good luck! OH, and btw, have you tried giving her bread with nutella (the chocolate spread)? It has hazelnuts traces in it, but I believe the risk of allergy is a lot less, and although not as nutricious as pb, my daughter loves it. I give it to her every once in a while especially when she's very picky about eating that day.

Its NOT about allergies. our nutritionist told us the reason that they ask you to wait on peanut butter is because its stickyness makes it a choking hazard. my son is 15 mnth old and had peanut butter for the first time yesterday but it was mixed into pancake batter. they recomend waiting intill the child is two and has plenty of practices feeding themselves and know how to take approriate sized bites

Most pediatricians recommend holding off on PB until after a year old... but when my daughter was 9 months old (she's 7 now) she ninja-ed my PB&J sandwich away from me, promptly ate the entire thing, had me freak out and call her doctor, only for her doctor to laugh and ask 'well, is she having any side effects?' She wasn't, and still hasn't had any reaction despite her early start on peanut butter. Pediatricians recommend you wait (because the earlier you start, the more prone to an allergy your child may be), but this is a classic case of 'everything was fine'... now my 5 year old daughter, I played by the rules and didn't give her PB until she was about 18 months... 4 years later, we found out that SHE DOES have a peanut allergy! WHAT?! But then again, that child is allergic to EVERYTHING (even lettuce)... so the 'rule' is 12 months, but really, anytime you're comfortable with it, start by spreading it super thin and see how she does. The most common indicator of a peanut allergy is a red rash around the child's eyes and behind their ears... but I think she'll do fine. Everyone is sooo scared of allergies now... but honey, WE all survived before the allergy craze ;) My brother didn't know he had a moderate to severe apple allergy until he was 22... and we were raised on PB&J and applesauce ;)