Why can't children under 5 have nuts?

[Laura032004]

Excluding the obvious allergy issues. My DS does not have a nut allergy, and loves nuts. However, the FSA website (and everything else it seems!) says:

What to avoid:
Whole or chopped nuts for children under five years old because of the risk of choking. It's a good idea to crush or flake them.

Why are they more likely to choke on nuts than anything else of a similar size? I hope I'm not missing something vital, and potentially endangering ds.

i can see the whole nuts thing... they're hard, as opposed to something like a pea which is squidgy.

dont' get the chopped nuts thing though... they aren't going to choke on a teeny piece of nut surely?

I don't understand that. From memory, dds were allowed strawberry fromais frais, but not strawberries. Ask your HV????

cos they're far too naughty

I let ds2, 2.5yrs sit with a bowl of unshelled peanuts and let him get cracking, literally. He bites them open and picks them out like a littel squirrel. Of course I am always within arms' length in case of choking.

I just read that too! Spooky
DD (3)loves them andI just break them up inot smaller pieces and make sure she chews them.

Glad to hear I'm not the only one! Not having even chopped nuts would put crunchy peanut butter out of the window, which I love The smooth stuff just isn't the same.

I think people get a bit too uptight about nuts. Of course I'm not talking about people who may be prone to allergies. But, my DD (almost 3) loves peanut butter. It is good for her. And I'm not going to take it away.

I gave both of mine their first peanut butter sandwich in the gps surgery

I copied the idea off nigella

Both my kids love all kinds of nuts and we have never stopped them having them....like someone said as long as you are close by there is not a problem. My kids have choked mainly on fruit tbh but people wouldn't stop their children eating bananas or satsumas.

DD loves pistachio nuts and part of the fun is cracking them open and eating the inside.

hmmm... someone mentioned strawberries. what's the deal with strawberries exactly? DS is 2.5 and eats lots of strawberries. what are the risks?

you can have nasty allergy to strawberries

obv there is less strawberry in fromage frais than the actual fruit... so a reaction would be less severe

Oh oh oh... I just have to say that peanut butter is way more nutritious than the fromage frais crap. That is junk food. And it doesn't go in my baby's mouth (I hope!).

My two DD 4.9 and DS 2.10 have been eating peanut butter for a long time. DD is allergic to fish and cats, but no problems with any nuts. I'd never heard about the 5yr rule!

As far as choking is concerned I understood that the most dangerous things were grapes or sausages, which would really stick in the tubes unlike hard things that could be coughed or banged out!

The reason children under 5 years of age should not ingest full nuts or crushed nuts is because they are a choking hazard, but also if a child were to inhale nuts into their lungs it is usually fatal. This is called “Foreign Body Aspiration” which children under the age of 3 are more likely to experience, but it can happen at any age.

Our daughter is allergic to peanuts, cashews and pistachios. She is 3 years old and has been prescribed an epi pen. She has ingested most nuts in a controlled environment (aside from the ones she has tested positive to in the prick test) and thankfully has passed. The nuts were crushed and mixed in with yogurt to avoid potential inhalation because children are not supposed to ingest crushed or whole nuts under the age of 5. Our homework is to now grind every nut our daughter has ingested and passed into a fine powder and add it into her food (mashed foods, sauces, yogurts) to ensure she keeps her tolerance. I hope this clarifies anyone’s confusion as to why children under the age of 5 should avoid whole and crushed nuts.