Peanut Allergy Protection - breast feeding may pass peanut allergy to babies - Brief Article

Nutrition Action Healthletter, July, 2001

Breastfeeding mothers who eat peanuts may unknowingly pass on to their babies the peanut proteins that can cause allergies. (Children under the age of three should not eat peanuts or other nuts because their bodies may absorb the proteins that can cause allergies.) It's also possible that pregnant women may transfer peanut proteins to their babies.

What to do: Peanuts account for most deaths caused by food allergies, and the number of children who are allergic to peanuts has increased markedly in recent years. To play it safe, women who are pregnant or breastfeeding should avoid eating peanuts, especially if they have a family history of allergies.

Journal of the American Medical Association 285: 1746, 2001.