Breastfeeding
The duration of breastfeeding and the composition of your breast milk can influence the allergic risk of your child.
Breastfeed your child
Breastfeeding gives your child necessary nutrients, cells and antibodies, healthy bacteria, and exposure to food allergens you ingest. As a result, your child is not only developing a healthy microbiome and immune system, but they are also developing oral tolerance to food.31
Exclusively breastfeeding your child for at least four to six months until solids are introduced, and continuing breastfeeding while introducing solids decreases their risk of developing allergies.32
Healthy weight
The composition of breast milk in normal-weight mothers differs from that of overweight mothers. Variations in small molecule metabolites found in breast milk are possible risk factors for childhood obesity.33
Being overweight during breastfeeding can lead to your child becoming overweight, which increases their risk of developing allergies.34 Therefore, it is vital to establish a healthy weight so your child can also maintain a healthy weight.
Healthy diet
A healthy maternal diet during breastfeeding provides sufficient nutrients and fuels a healthy microbiome.
Additionally, it has been shown that consuming more cow's milk during breastfeeding decreases your child's risk of allergies.35
Since oral exposure to food allergens from breastmilk promotes oral tolerance in your child, you should ingest a diverse selection of food allergens while breastfeeding.
Oral Tolerance Development During Breastfeeding
Facilitate healthy microbial exposure
Sufficient bacterial exposure is necessary for fostering a healthy microbiome.
Probiotic foods are an excellent way to obtain healthy bacteria for your breastmilk, which will protect your child against allergies.36
Another way to obtain healthy bacteria is through targeted hygiene, which maximizes exposure to healthy microbes and limits exposure to unhealthy microbes.
A healthier microbiome for the parent leads to a healthier microbiome for the child.
No smoking
Regular maternal smoking is a risk factor for allergies in children exposed to secondhand smoke, which damages the skin and respiratory barriers.37
Even thirdhand smoke has been shown to have similar damaging effects as secondhand smoke, so smoking outside is not a way to prevent damage to your child.38
The complete avoidance of smoking during breastfeeding is essential in preventing allergies.
Avoid antibiotics
Antibiotics have adverse effects on the diversity and abundance of microbes in mother's milk, which impedes the ability of the child to obtain sufficient healthy bacteria.39
Additionally, antibiotics are passed into breast milk, which directly exposes your child to antibiotics upon ingestion. This exposure alters the makeup of your child's microbiome and leads to allergies.40
Consult your doctor before taking antibiotics, which have been shown to contribute to adverse allergic outcomes in offspring.
Prevent exposure to toxins
Toxins pass into breast milk and result in adverse allergic outcomes for your child, so it is essential to prevent exposure to them.
Manage stress
Higher caregiver stress during early childhood is associated with an allergic immune profile for the child.41
Strategies to decrease stress: 29
- High-quality sleep
- Physical activity
- Healthy diet
- Meditation
- Gratitude