Peanut Allergies Drop Significantly After Guidelines Shift

A decade after health experts reversed course on peanut introduction, the results are in—and they're promising.

New research published in the journal Pediatrics reveals that approximately 60,000 children have avoided food allergies since guidelines changed in 2015, including 40,000 who would have developed peanut allergies under the old advice.

For years, parents were told to keep peanut products away from children until age 3. Now, experts recommend introducing them as early as 4-6 months, when babies begin eating solid foods.

Dr. Ruchi Gupta, Director of the Center for Food Allergy and Asthma Research, explains the safest way to introduce peanut products to infants and what warning signs parents should watch for in the video above.

Despite the progress, about 8% of children still have food allergies, with more than 2% affected by peanut allergies specifically.