Peanuts for babies: when to start, how to prepare and allergy signs

Peanut is one of the common allergy-causing foods, and current advice in Australia, the UK and the US is to introduce it early rather than wait. Australia's ASCIA's guide to introducing solid foods, updated in January 2026, says to include smooth peanut butter or paste, peanut powder or finely ground peanut soon after your baby starts solids at around 6 months, and within the first year (by 12 months). Once peanut is tolerated, keep it in your baby's diet at least once a week.

The countries differ on one point: what to do first if your baby has eczema or another allergy. This guide sets out each country's advice as written, then covers how to prepare peanut safely at each age, the choking rules for nuts, and what to do if your baby reacts.

When can babies have peanut?

Australia's ASCIA says delaying peanut has been shown to increase the chance of a peanut allergy, and that babies with eczema, another food allergy or a family member with allergies should still have peanut in the first year. The NHS guide to food allergies in babies says delaying peanut beyond 6 to 12 months may increase the risk of allergy.

The NIAID parent summary explains why timing matters: peanut allergy tends to begin early in life and to persist into adulthood. NIAID also says to introduce other solid foods before trying peanut.

Australia's ASCIA also lists smooth nut butters and pastes in the "meat and alternatives" food group, alongside meat, fish, egg and legumes.

What do the US guidelines say about eczema and egg allergy?

The US advice comes from the 2017 NIAID addendum guidelines for the prevention of peanut allergy. An AAP news release from October 2025 describes these guidelines, endorsed by the AAP, as the current basis for early peanut introduction, and reports that peanut allergy in children aged 0 to 3 fell by 27.2% after they were introduced. The guidelines sort babies into three groups:

1. Severe eczema, egg allergy or both. Peanut should be introduced as early as 4 to 6 months. Check with your baby's doctor first; they may order a blood test or refer your baby for a skin prick test, and the first feed may happen at home, in the clinic or at a specialist's.
2. Mild to moderate eczema. Peanut can be introduced around 6 months, at home or, if you prefer, in the doctor's office. NIAID adds that if peanut isn't a regular part of your family's diet, you don't need to feel pressured to start it this early.
3. No eczema or food allergy. Peanut can be introduced freely at home, along with other solid foods.

The AAP's 2019 report on early peanut introduction defines high-risk babies as those with severe eczema needing prescription treatment, or an egg allergy, and says supervised introduction is a consideration for them. The AAP's allergen guide suggests talking with your pediatrician first if your baby has severe, persistent eczema or has had an immediate allergic reaction to any food.

What does the NHS say about eczema and allergy?

The NHS suggests talking to your doctor or pediatrician first if your baby already has a diagnosed food allergy or eczema, or if there's a family history of food allergies. The NHS list of foods to avoid says the same about a family history of allergies before you introduce any nut. Otherwise, the NHS says peanut can be given from around 6 months, one new allergy food at a time.

Australia's ASCIA's position is that babies with eczema or another food allergy should still have peanut in the first year, and that keeping eczema well controlled may help too. If your baby's eczema is hard to control, it's worth raising with your doctor or pediatrician before solids start.

How do I prepare peanut for my baby at each age?

Use smooth peanut butter or paste, peanut powder or finely ground peanut, never whole nuts or pieces, and thin it or mix it into other food.

The NIAID guidelines give four recipes, each with about 2 g of peanut protein:

• Thinned peanut butter: stir 2 teaspoons of smooth peanut butter with 2 to 3 teaspoons of hot water until smooth, then let it cool.
• Peanut butter purée: mix 2 teaspoons of smooth peanut butter into 2 to 3 tablespoons of a fruit or vegetable purée your baby already eats.
• Peanut powder or flour: mix 2 teaspoons into about 2 tablespoons of a purée your baby already eats.
• Peanut puffs: softened with water for babies under 7 months.

These are full serves; for the first taste, start smaller (see below). The NHS says nut butter can be spread on a food such as toast but shouldn't be given on its own. For how textures move on generally, see food textures by age.

How do I introduce peanut and keep it going?

Australia's ASCIA's steps:

1. Choose a good time, when your baby is well and you can watch them for a couple of hours afterwards. Australia's ASCIA says reactions usually happen within minutes to two hours.
2. Start with about 1/4 teaspoon of smooth peanut butter, paste, powder or finely ground peanut mixed into your baby's usual food.
3. Build up. If there's no reaction, give about 1/2 teaspoon next time, then keep doubling up to a normal serve for their age.
4. Introduce one new allergy food per meal, so you know which food caused any reaction.
5. Keep it in the diet at least once a week once it's tolerated. Australia's ASCIA says this may reduce the chance of an allergy developing.

The AAP gives 2 teaspoons of peanut butter as an example of a routine portion. For babies introduced under the US high-risk guideline, NIAID suggests about 6 to 7 g of peanut protein a week, over 3 or more feedings. Australia's ASCIA also says never to rub peanut on your baby's skin to "test" for allergy. Introducing allergens has the full plan, and eggs for babies covers the other early allergen.

Why are whole nuts a choking risk, and until what age?

Every source treats whole nuts as a choking hazard, but each sets its own age limit:

• The NHS and the Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne in Australia say never give whole nuts to children under 5.
• The NIAID guidelines say whole nuts shouldn't be given to children under 5, and peanut butter from a spoon or in lumps or dollops shouldn't be given to children under 4.
• The AAP's 2019 report says whole peanuts are a choking hazard for children under 4.
• The CDC's choking hazards list includes whole or chopped nuts and seeds, and chunks or spoonfuls of nut butter.

Stay with your baby, sitting upright, every time they eat. If your baby can't breathe, cough or cry, shout for help and call 911. The NHS first-aid steps for a choking baby are up to 5 back blows, then up to 5 chest thrusts, repeated until help arrives; if your baby becomes unresponsive, start CPR and follow the call-taker's instructions. Choking vs gagging walks through each step. The Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne recommends that anyone caring for children does a first-aid course, and an infant course lets you practice.

What should I do if my baby reacts to peanut?

Australia's ASCIA's anaphylaxis FAQ separates mild to moderate signs from anaphylaxis:

Australia's ASCIA classes lip swelling as a mild to moderate sign, while the NHS urgent-help guide lists swollen lips among the reasons to call an ambulance, so this guide treats sudden lip swelling as an emergency. A mild reaction can come before anaphylaxis, so keep watching.

For anaphylaxis, follow the Australia's ASCIA first aid plan for anaphylaxis: hold your baby flat, give an adrenaline device if prescribed (if in doubt, give it), call 911, and start CPR if your baby is unresponsive and not breathing normally.

For hives, face or eye swelling, or vomiting with normal breathing, stop giving peanut, stay with your baby, watch closely for signs of anaphylaxis and get medical help today. Australia's ASCIA says to get specialist advice before offering peanut again, and to keep introducing other allergy foods. NIAID adds that if mild symptoms appear within 2 hours of eating peanut after a week or more of eating it, you should contact your doctor. Redness only around the mouth, with no other signs, is not usually an allergic reaction, according to Australia's ASCIA.

What's worth noting when you introduce peanut?

Note the form you used (thinned peanut butter, powder or ground peanut), roughly how much your baby ate, the time and anything you saw over the next two hours. Ticking off each week that peanut was eaten makes it easier to keep it going. If your baby reacts, a photo of the rash and the time it started will help the doctor.

When should I get help?

Call 911 now if your baby:

• has difficult or noisy breathing, a wheeze or a persistent cough
• has sudden swelling of the lips, tongue or throat
• has a hoarse voice or cry, or becomes pale, floppy or drowsy, or collapses
• is choking and can't breathe, cough or cry

Get medical help today if your baby:

• has hives or welts beyond the mouth area, or swelling of the face or eyes, with normal breathing (stop the food and watch closely for anaphylaxis signs)
• vomits after eating peanut
• needed back blows or chest thrusts, even if they now seem well

Talk to your doctor or pediatrician if:

• your baby has severe or hard-to-control eczema, or an egg or other food allergy, and hasn't had peanut yet
• your baby has reacted to peanut before and you'd like a plan for other foods
• you're unsure how to keep peanut in the diet (call your pediatrician's after-hours nurse line after hours)