Trying nuts with a history of severe allergy in the family....anyone got any advice?

[hellisotherpeopleandhorlicks]

My DS is ten months and still hasn't tried nuts. Mainly because I am severely allergic so we don't have nut products in the house, but also because I'm really worried about it incase he has it. I am so allergic I won't be able to actually feed him anything with it in, so DH will have to do it, but I feel like I still need to do it as so many things contain traces so I want to know early on and also because I've read that the longer you leave it the more likely it is they will develop a reaction.

Has anyone been in the same boat and got any advice?

Poor you, you must be really anxious about it. Do you have any form of contact for a doctor regarding your own allergies you could ask for support from? With your own allergies being so severe I think I'd want some professional advice on this.

I don't have experience but general advice is to introduce potential allergens early in the day to check for reactions and to not introduce anything else new at the same time. Also some babies only react the second time they try something so introduce very tentatively a few times.

I hope it goes well and your DS is allergy free :)

DH is allergic to nuts so I sought advice and was tokd:

• early as possible into the weaning journey
• try skin contact first ie peanut butter on inside of elbows
• Next time peanut butter on face
• when tasting, offer as a finger food as babies are often good at not wanting to eat what is harmful to them. Dh is repulsed by the smell of his allergens for instance.
• do it with 2 adults in the house in case medical advice is needed
• first tastes to be for breakfast or lunch so time for monitoring aferwards

- do it on a weekday as I live next a GP so they may be able to provide emergency care if needed

Good luck

I'd be tempted to email local children's allergy dept at your hospital and ask for advice. Obviously your gp unlikely to be specialist on allergies and mine, quite rightly, just passed us on to hospital dept ( but longish wait for appointment).

DS (now 19) nicked a bit of toast with peanut butter off DHs plate at 13 months and ate it. Rash around mouth and throat very quickly. I also remember hearing that initial contact just sensitises them to it but I'm not sure I'd rely on that and would be reluctant to test that theory at home.

If you can't go direct to hospital dept for info, I'd ask gp if your child can be tested as allergies tend to run in families.

Thank you this is all really helpful. I think I'll start with my GP and see if I can get referred to a dietician if they can't help as I am so anxious about it
I know I should have done it by now really but I've been putting it off because I'm so worried!

Drive to a and e car park. Feed nuts. Wait half an hour. Repeat three times. Any reaction, you are nice and close!

The research indicates that even for high risk DC, early introduction of nuts reduces the chance of later allergy.

I'd do what Find suggests.