INTRODUCTION OF COMPLEMENTARY FEEDING IN CHILDREN: COULD BE THE DELAY A REAL STRATEGY OF PREVENTION OF ALLERGY?

Key words: Food allergy, Weaning, Timing, Prevention

There is a lack of evidence about the timing of introduction of solids in the infant diet especially regarding the possibility that a delay of introduction of particular allergenic food could prevent the development of food allergy in children. In this debate the author underlines that for all infants complementary feeding has to be introduced from the sixth month of life because until this time weaning does not seem to be necessary for nutritional need of children. After this time, there is no evidence that a fast introduction of solids is clearly related to a high risk of development of allergy in children (not even with assessed risk of allergy).