Breast milk may increase risk of nut allergies, study finds

Exclusive breastfeeding in the first six months of life could be linked to an increased risk of nut allergies, new research has found.

The Australian National University (ANU) Medical School and the ACT Health Directorate jointly researched a link between breastfeeding and nut allergies by using the ACT Kindergarten Health Check Questionnaire that parents of children starting primary school in the ACT complete.

The study found that nut allergies are on the increase in ACT children and those who had been breastfed for the first six months of life were more likely to have a nut allergy.

For children who were fed solely breast milk for the first six months of life, the likelihood of developing a nut allergy was 1.5 times higher than children exposed to other foods and fluids.

“Our results contribute to the argument that breastfeeding alone does not appear to be protective against nut allergy in children - it may, in fact, be causative of allergy,” said Marjan Kljakovic, Professor of General Practice at the ANU Medical School and author of the study.

Professor Kljakovic said health authorities have changed their advice for infant feeding habits, recommending solids and formula be introduced later in life.

“Despite breastfeeding being recommended as the sole source of nutrition in the first six months of life, an increasing number of studies have implicated breastfeeding as a cause of the increasing trend in nut allergy,” Kljakovic said.

“Peanut allergy accounts for two-thirds of all fatal food-induced allergic reactions. It is important for us to understand how feeding practices might be playing a part.”

The paper was published in the International Journal of Pediatrics.