Baby Food and The Four Day Rule

We received the following message last week from Christy in the United States…

I would like to know at what point can I stop “introducing” foods to my 9 month old and not have to wait the 3-4 day waiting period? When can I give her table foods without having to worry about an allergic reaction? She is currently eating #2 jarred foods, but I would like to introduce table foods.

With Christy’s permission, we decided to share her question – and our answer – here on our blog, just in case you may be wondering the same thing!

Here’s our reply…

Although the risk of an allergic reaction to new foods is small, ANY food has the potential to cause an allergic reaction in a sensitive individual. The risk of allergic reaction is lower after your baby’s first birthday – nevertheless, we actually continued to observe the ‘four day rule’ with our children whenever we introduced a brand new food.

Typically, the ‘four day rule’ is suggested to help you pinpoint foods that may trigger allergic reactions or digestive problems. When your baby is older and her digestive system is more mature, then the risk of digestive problems diminishes. However, if a food caused an allergic reaction, then it would be important to know as quickly as possible which food was responsible – this helps you ensure that you don’t give that same food to your baby again until you have discussed the situation with your child’s doctor (you can read more about the four day rule here).

Therefore – to be on the safe side, there is no ‘cut off’ age at which the separate introduction of new foods is no longer necessary and we recommend continuing until AT LEAST your baby’s first birthday. Please note, too, that extra care should be taken if there is a family history of food allergy, as this increases your baby’s risk.

I do hope this helps and that your little one enjoys the transition to table foods.

What do YOU think?

How long did you continue to introduce new foods separately? Did you ever NOT observe the four day rule – but wish you had because your little one reacted badly to a certain food… and you weren’t too sure which one it was?

We’d love to hear your opinions!