Parents warned not to self-diagnose baby’s food allergies

The rise in cases of childhood food allergy in the past 20 years is not just down to “wrong labelling” says NHS watchdog, the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE). The NICE report studied 1,000 children on the Isle of Wight and found that around 6% had a food allergy.

Though the NICE report did suggest self-diagnosis was a factor, there is a genuine increase in allergic reactions to foods such as cow’s milk, dairy and eggs.

“This increase has been reported as evidence of over-anxious parents worrying unnecessarily about their children. But actually 6%-8% of all children in the UK with a genuine allergy is a huge number,” said paediatric allergist Dr Adam Fox.

Poorer diets of processed and junk food and a lack of vitamin D have been linked to allergies. Doctors have also suggested that our modern, bug-free houses might be to blame for failing to introduce harmless bugs to babies in order to build up their immune system. Late weaning has also been put forward as a potential cause, with one study showing early exposure to cow’s milk actually decreasing the chance of an allergy.

However, more research is needed to prove any of these theories.

If your baby is showing signs of an allergy, the best thing to do is visit your GP. Avoiding foods as a way of detecting intolerances should only be done with professional supervision because some food groups, such as dairy, are vital for your baby’s development. Many infant allergies and intolerances disappear with age and it’s worth reintroducing foods as your baby gets older.