Introducing peanuts into your babies diet (from the LEAP study)

What was the LEAP study?

It was a clinical trial trying to understand how to prevent peanut allergy in children.

Who entered the study?

640 children were included in the study. They had to be between the ages of 4 and 11 months and have either an allergy to egg, difficult eczema or both.

What happened in the study?

The children had a skin prick test to test sensitivity to peanut and depending upon the result were told whether to eat peanut, avoid peanut or they may have had a peanut challenge to decide this.

What did the study find?

The study found that in children who had an egg allergy, difficult eczema or both, that if they ate peanut from a weaning age then they were much less likely to have a peanut allergy at the age of 5 years.

Why have I received this information?

Your child will have either an egg allergy, difficult eczema or both and will have had the skin prick test to peanut.

1. If this skin prick test was negative then you will have been advised to introduce peanuts at home.
2. If the skin prick test was between 1 to 4mm then your child will have had a blood test and if this test is low enough then we will arrange for your child to be given peanut for the first time at the hospital.

Introducing peanut at home

Your child needs to have at least 6 grams of peanut protein each week spread over 2 to 3 meals. Examples of foods to use include:

• Smooth peanut butter (1 heaped teaspoon = 2 grams peanut protein)
• Bamba snack (25 gram packet = 3 grams peanut protein)
• Ground peanuts (8 gram ground peanuts = 2 grams peanut protein)

It is really important to remember to include peanuts in your child’s diet on a regular basis.

Bamba snack is available from most major supermarkets or online. Any smooth peanut butter brand can be used as long as peanut is the main ingredient.

Suggested recipes

• Smooth peanut butter on toast
• Smooth peanut butter mixed with a fruit puree as a pudding
• Smooth peanut butter mixed in with a small yoghurt
• Mix ground peanuts with a portion of food a child will eat such as in potatoes, a casserole, a sauce

What if my child has a reaction to peanut?

1. Manage any allergic reaction as you would normally with antihistamines or phoning 999 for an ambulance if your child is really poorly.
2. After the reaction has settled, please contact us for advice so that we can decide whether your child needs to be seen in clinic or whether your child should stop eating peanuts.

Follow up

You will receive phone calls at 3 months and 6 months after introducing nuts to make sure that you are remembering to include peanuts in your child’s diet and to answer any concerns. You will have routine follow up in clinic if your child has allergies.

Whole nuts should not be given to young children due to the risk of choking