According to British Skin Foundation, atopic eczema (as well as asthma and hay fever) tends to run in families. If one or both parents suffer from eczema, asthma or hay fever, it is more likely that their children will suffer from them too.
So if you or any of your family has eczema, then do ensure you systematically introduce new food when you start introducing semi solids to your infant. Many parents who adopted guidelines from several allergy and pediatric organizations, manage to identify food triggers early and keep their child free from eczema.
Here are the 5 top tips :
1. New food items should be given to baby one at a time every 3-5 days.
2. Start with single food and then you can combine or mix food that you have already introduced for the variety and enjoyment.
3. Start with low allergenic foods (foods least likely to cause an allergic reaction).
Some examples of high allergenic food are: peanut, shellfish, egg, cow’s milk, soy, tree nuts.
4. After completing the low allergenic food, slowly introduce foods that are likely to cause allergic reaction and be extra watchful.
5. Do not totally avoid introducing high allergenic food because they are generally nutritious if your baby is not allergic to them.
We have also created a baby food chart which lists the groups of food to start and what to watch out for. Easily printable to put up in your kitchen/fridge for easy reference, request for by providing us your email below :
Source :
- British Allergy Foundation
- American Academy of Pediatrics, American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology
- Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy