Introducing peanut, egg and dairy to your baby
A clear, evidence-based guide to introducing peanut, egg, and dairy to your baby, with AAP-based timing, safe methods, and choking-hazard prevention.
In short
Your baby is at higher risk for peanut allergy if they have severe, persistent eczema or have already reacted to egg. Ask your pediatrician about starting peanut foods as early as 4 to 6 months, under their guidance. Never give whole peanuts or tree nuts. They're a choking hazard. Instead, mix a little peanut butter into cereal, purée, or yogurt, or dissolve it into breast milk or formula. Hold off on cow's milk as a drink until after your baby's first birthday. Babies can't digest it as easily as breast milk or formula.
Sourced from AAP / HealthyChildren.org · Updated August 15, 2026
Introducing high-allergen foods used to come with a lot of “wait and see” advice. That guidance has shifted. For many babies — especially those at higher risk of food allergy — pediatric guidance now supports earlier, deliberate introduction of foods like peanut. If you're staring at a jar of peanut butter wondering how, when, and whether your baby is ready, you're not alone. There is a clear, practical path forward. The details matter here. How a food is prepared and served can matter just as much as when you start.
This guide covers the current protocol for introducing peanut. It covers what egg has to do with your baby's risk level. And it covers why dairy milk is on a different timeline entirely. It also covers the choking-safety rules that should shape every one of these first bites. None of it needs to happen in a single sitting or a single week. Think of it as a set of guardrails for your baby's solid-food journey.
Why Does Timing Matter for Allergen Foods?
The goal of an allergen-introduction plan isn't to rush your baby through a checklist. It's to introduce allergy-causing foods in a form and at a pace that fits your individual baby. That way, you and your pediatrician can watch how she responds. For most families, this is a routine, low-drama part of starting solids. It's a new food offered at home, in a calm moment, alongside foods your baby already knows.
For babies with specific risk factors, though, pause and plan with your pediatrician before you begin. Don't treat peanut like any other first food in these cases. Knowing which category your baby falls into is the first decision this whole plan hinges on. That's exactly where the timing guidance below comes in.
When Should I Start Peanut If My Baby Is High-Risk?
For babies considered high-risk for peanut allergy, peanut-containing foods should ideally be introduced as early as 4 to 6 months of age. A baby is high-risk if they have or had severe, persistent eczema (a skin condition causing itchy, inflamed patches). A baby is also high-risk if they've had an immediate allergic reaction to a highly allergenic food such as egg.
If either of those describes your baby, talk with your pediatrician before introducing peanut. They may want to guide the first exposure directly or recommend allergy testing beforehand. Don't skip this step or guess your way through it. It's the one part of the plan that genuinely needs a professional's input first. Getting that conversation on the calendar early takes a lot of the guesswork out of the months ahead.
If your baby doesn't have either risk factor, you still have room to introduce peanut thoughtfully within this same general window. The difference is simple. A high-risk baby's first exposure is a conversation to have with your pediatrician first, rather than something to navigate alone.
How Do I Safely Give My Baby Peanut for the First Time?
Whole peanuts and whole tree nuts should never be given to babies or young children. They are a choking hazard, full stop. This rule matters more than anything else in this section: no whole nuts, ever, at this stage.
Instead, mix and thin a small amount of peanut butter into cereal, pureed fruit, or yogurt. Or dissolve it into breast milk or formula and feed it by spoon. This keeps the texture smooth and manageable, while still exposing your baby to the peanut protein.
Once that first exposure has gone well, keep using this same thinned, mixed-in approach. The goal is exposure to peanut protein — not whole nuts — at any point in early infancy. There's no need to graduate to a different form. A spoonable, well-mixed texture stays the right choice well beyond the very first taste.
What Does “High-Risk” for Peanut Allergy Mean?
Egg comes up here for a specific reason. An immediate allergic reaction to egg is one of two things pediatric guidance uses to define a baby as high-risk for peanut allergy. The other is severe, persistent eczema. In other words, how your baby has reacted to egg can directly shape the timeline for introducing peanut.
If your baby has already had an immediate reaction to egg, that's your signal to loop in your pediatrician before introducing peanut. Don't start on your own timeline in that case. These allergen milestones aren't isolated from each other. How one food goes can genuinely change how you approach the next.
When Can My Baby Have Cow's Milk?
Dairy follows a different clock than peanut or egg. Infants can't digest cow's milk as completely or easily as they digest breast milk or formula. That's a key reason cow's milk isn't given as a drink before 12 months.
Once your baby is past their first birthday, pasteurized whole or reduced-fat (2%) cow's milk may be given. Until then, breast milk or formula remains the drink of choice. Even so, other dairy foods can become part of solid-food exploration. Keep this distinction in mind. The caution here is specifically about cow's milk as a drink, on its own timeline separate from the peanut and egg guidance above.
What Else Should I Know About Choking and Nutrition?
Allergen introduction happens against the backdrop of everyday solid-food safety. One rule is worth keeping front and center. When offering finger foods, avoid round, coin-shaped slices of vegetables, fruits, or meat. That shape raises choking risk no matter what food it is. Build this into how you cut and serve food generally — not just during allergen introduction.
At the same time, as your baby starts solids, she needs foods that supply iron and zinc. Think baby food made with meat or iron-fortified cereals. These nutrient-dense staples sit comfortably alongside your allergen plan. There's no need to choose between covering nutrition and covering allergen exposure. A typical week of early solids can easily include both an iron-rich staple and a planned peanut exposure.
Frequently asked questions
When should I start introducing peanut to my baby?
For babies considered high-risk for peanut allergy, peanut-containing products should ideally be introduced as early as 4 to 6 months of age. A baby is high-risk if they have or had severe, persistent eczema. A baby is also high-risk if they've had an immediate allergic reaction to a highly allergenic food like egg. If either applies, talk with your pediatrician before you start. For babies without those risk factors, this same general window is still a reasonable time to begin.
Is peanut butter safe to give straight from the jar or spoon?
Not on its own — it should be mixed and thinned first. A safe approach is to mix a small amount of peanut butter into cereal, pureed fruit, or yogurt. Or dissolve it in breast milk or formula and feed it by spoon. Whole peanuts and tree nuts should never be given to babies or young children, since they're a choking hazard. So peanut butter straight from a spoon in its regular thick form isn't the right texture for this stage either.
My baby has eczema — does that change how I should introduce peanut?
It might. Severe, persistent eczema is one of the two factors that define a baby as high-risk for peanut allergy. The other factor is an immediate allergic reaction to a highly allergenic food such as egg. If your baby fits that description, talk with your pediatrician before introducing peanut, rather than starting on your own. That way they can help you plan the first exposure safely.
Can my baby drink cow's milk before their first birthday?
No — cow's milk as a drink is held off until after 12 months. That's mainly because infants can't digest it as completely or easily as they digest breast milk or formula. Once your baby is past one year old, pasteurized whole or reduced-fat (2%) cow's milk may be given as a regular part of their diet.
What should I avoid when offering finger foods during this stage?
Skip round, coin-shaped slices of vegetables, fruits, or meat. That shape raises choking risk regardless of how soft the food is. And keep prioritizing iron- and zinc-rich foods, like meat-based baby food or iron-fortified cereals. Make them a steady part of the solid-food routine alongside whatever allergen introduction you're working through.
Sources
- For babies considered high-risk for peanut allergy, peanut-containing products should ideally be introduced as early as 4 to 6 months of age. — AAP / HealthyChildren.org
- A safe way to introduce peanut to an infant is by mixing and thinning a small amount of peanut butter into cereal, pureed fruit, or yogurt (or dissolving it in breast milk or formula and feeding by spoon), rather than giving whole peanuts. — AAP / HealthyChildren.org
- Whole peanuts or tree nuts should never be fed to babies or young children because they are choking hazards. — AAP / HealthyChildren.org
- A baby is considered high risk for peanut allergy if they have or had severe, persistent eczema or have had an immediate allergic reaction to a highly allergenic food such as egg, and parents should talk with the pediatrician first before introducing peanut in these cases. — AAP / HealthyChildren.org
- When offering finger foods (as in baby-led weaning), round coin-shaped slices of vegetables, fruits, or meat should be avoided because they increase choking risk. — AAP / HealthyChildren.org
- As babies start solid foods, they need foods that provide iron and zinc, such as baby food made with meat or iron-fortified cereals. — AAP / HealthyChildren.org
- Infants cannot digest cow's milk as completely or easily as they digest breast milk or baby formula, which is a key reason it is not given before 12 months; once a baby is past one year old, pasteurized whole or reduced-fat (2%) cow's milk may be given. — AAP / HealthyChildren.org
Educational information, not medical advice — always consult your doctor.