Dr. Wendy Sue Swanson
Chief Medical Officer, SpoonfulOne
Food allergies have doubled from the previous generation, and babies born today are more susceptible to developing a life-threatening food allergy than ever before. Today, nearly six million children (two children in every classroom) in the United States have a food allergy.
And the thing is, anyone can develop a food allergy, even without a family history. Genetics alone aren’t the only factor and aren’t even the leading risk. In fact, two out of three children who develop a food allergy do not have a parent with one. These statistics can be alarming, but as parents, you can change the risk for your children from the very beginning, and there is a solution to help: SpoonfulOne.
Food allergy prevention is possible
New research from around the world has shown that prevention of food allergies is possible. Science, data, and groundbreaking research have shown that with early food introduction (especially common allergens), and routine feeding of diverse foods, you can lower a baby’s risk of developing a food allergy.
In response to new research – and the growing problem of food allergies in children – the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) now recommends introducing babies to solids, common allergens, and diverse foods around 4-6 months of age. Waiting too long to introduce and regularly feed these foods increases the allergy risk for babies. Introduce common allergens (e.g., egg, peanut, fish, sesame) just as you introduce fruits and vegetables.
The reason: babies’ growing immune systems are learning and growing up as they begin to try new foods. Seventy percent of their immune cells reside in the lining of their stomach and gastrointestinal tract. Regular exposure to diverse foods in a baby’s tummy can help guide the immune system by training it to recognize and tolerate potentially allergenic foods. Consistency of feeding is key – intermittent or “one bite” exposure to foods may not be enough. Like any great habit you have to keep at it – think toothbrushing. Research shows the immune system works best when it’s exposed to a wide variety of foods regularly throughout a child’s first few years of life.
The science behind early introduction
The groundbreaking LEAP study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, proved that introducing peanuts to babies at high risk for peanut allergy reduced the odds of such an allergy by up to 80 percent. It was remarkable. A year later, the same U.K. researchers published the EAT study, which proved that introducing six allergenic foods (peanut, egg, milk, sesame, whitefish, and wheat) to infants was safe. Among the 1,300 participating babies, there was zero anaphylaxis, and the rate of food allergy was reduced in those babies whose moms were able to get six foods in each week, in keeping with the study protocol.
The problem was that only a minority of parents could stick to the regimen of introducing all of these foods in a week. It’s really difficult to get all these diverse foods in as your baby is growing up.
New solutions to help parents
Based on this global body of evidence, and our understanding that feeding common allergens consistently can be extremely difficult, SpoonfulOne was created by world-renowned pediatric allergist and mom to five, Dr. Kari Nadeau. SpoonfulOne is scientifically formulated to protect your baby from developing a food allergy by helping babies get exposure to all the proteins of high-risk foods. Each serving includes scientifically measured amounts of all of the food groups responsible for over 90 percent of food allergies.
The delicious products come in three formats: a Mix-in Powder, Puffs, and Oat Crackers. They are easy to take on the go, making it simple and safe to introduce SpoonfulOne. Our mission is to help parents introduce allergens easily and with confidence, and keep them in the diet as babies and toddlers grow. We all want to protect the next generation of children from developing a food allergy. Diverse, early introduction of foods will help – so let your babies eat.