When should I introduce peanut to reduce allergy risk?

What the evidence says

For most babies, pediatric groups recommend introducing age-appropriate peanut foods (like smooth peanut butter thinned with water or peanut puffs) around 6 months of age, once your baby has successfully started other solid foods and shows they're developmentally ready.

If your baby has severe eczema, an egg allergy, or both, they're considered higher risk for peanut allergy. Guidelines recommend introducing peanut even earlier, as young as 4-6 months, and getting an allergy test (skin prick or blood test) beforehand so your pediatrician can guide how to safely start.

This advice is based on the LEAP trial, a large randomized study that found regularly feeding peanut to high-risk infants from 4-11 months reduced their risk of developing peanut allergy by 81% compared to avoiding it. A later review of multiple trials confirmed this benefit.

Always introduce peanut in a safe, age-appropriate form (never whole nuts, which are a choking hazard), and talk to your pediatrician first if your baby has eczema or other food allergies.