When and How to Introduce Peanut Butter to Toddler

Please go to parentcenter.com and look up choking hazards, or just google choking hazards. Most state child care regulations state that 3 years old is when kids start having less choking and can start fully chewing and swallowing foods like raisins and marshmallows. I know I got lots of odd looks when I would stop and cut up grapes into 1/4 inch pieces, or hot dogs into long skinny slices then in bite size pieces. But I never had a child choke on me once I started doing these things.

As for Peanut Butter, WIC gives it to children after they reach a year or 2 old. I think the later we give kids potentially allergy related foods the better they are off in the long run for allergies.

2 yrs old is usually the recommended age for introducing nuts. Just make sure you only introduce 1 new food at a time and wait at least 2 wks before trying another new food so you can watch for allergic reactions.
As for raisins, I think I started those after 1 yr old. I don't think my kids ever choked on them (but I always supervised their eating anyway)...but my older daughter once got one stuck up her nose LOL

14 months for the peanut butter. I eat it every morning on toast or an english muffin, and since my baby HAS to try everything on my plate (according to her) I give her small bites. Now at 18 months she is able to take larger bites. I just make sure I spread it thin for her. She also has had a mouthfull of teeth since she was around 14 months. Raisins I have tried but she wont eat them.

I think my son was around 19 months and I said to hubs let's give it a shot and be ready to go to the ER(lol). Of course nothing happened. Happily he has no allergies to any food, so far, he is 7 so I'm thinking we've tried everything. If you are worried just have someone with you when he tries it.

I waited till 12 months with my first, but because he likes to "share" his pb&j sandwiches with his baby sister, I think she first had it when she was about 7 months old. We don't have a history of allergies to nuts in the family, so I wasn't worried about it. Turns out though, my neice has a severe peanut allergy, but both my kids are still ok with it. I was strictly by the books with food for my first, but I didn't worry about it with my second. I've tried every food under the sun with her, and there's nothing she won't eat. Of course, I'm careful about the size of the pieces! I've even been cutting up raisins for her, but she only has two teeth, and they're kind of tough to handle at this point.

The guidelines used to be to wait until 2 or 3 for peanuts. However, that is no longer the case. Except below is from http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/571997, "New Guidelines Downplay Role of Diet in Preventing Pediatric Allergies: An Expert Interview With Frank Greer, MD":

" Medscape: How will this new report have an impact on clinical practice, especially for pediatricians?

Dr. Greer: ... Now we can tell mothers: If you have exclusively breastfed for 4 months and your child is not at risk for allergy, you can introduce any food at 6 or 8 months or whatever. [Solid foods should still not be introduced before the infant is 4-6 months old, according to the report.] In children at risk for atopic disease, simply avoiding foods for a certain time may delay the onset of allergy, but it doesn't prevent allergy.

Medscape: What about if an infant shows a predisposition for allergy?

Dr. Greer: Atopic dermatitis is typically diagnosed before 4 months of age. If a baby is breastfeeding yet develops atopic dermatitis and thus shows a propensity for allergy, I suspect the clinical guidance would be to not give the baby peanuts [or other common food allergens].
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If your family has a history of allergies or eczema, talk to your pediatrician first before giving peanuts.

My pediatrician recommended NOT waiting to introduce foods like peanut butter, and I think my son had it for the first time by about 9 months. It is a choking hazard, so I spread it pretty thinly on toast and watched him very closely, but he was fine with it.
The following is an excerpt from a 2008 American Academy of Pediatrics study:
"Although solid foods should not be introduced before 4 to 6 months of age, there is no current convincing evidence that delaying their introduction beyond this period has a significant protective effect on the development of atopic disease regardless of whether infants are fed cow milk protein formula or human milk. This includes delaying the introduction of foods that are considered to be highly allergic, such as fish, eggs, and foods containing peanut protein."

My pediatrician told me to wait until 18 months to introduce peanuts. I've given my daughter other "nut" flavors (almond, pistachio). They were flavors in ice cream and she did okay. My daughter also had Chic-Fil-A, which cooks in peanut oil and she did okay, but she hasn't had peanut butter. I don't know about raisins. My concern with my daughter, is she tends not to chew everything and she may try to swallow the raisin whole which could cause a problem.

As far as peanut butter goes, I gave it to my son at 2 years old. We had rushed to his dr appt and I hadn't eaten and happended to have a peanut butter granola bar in my purse. When I started eating it he wanted a bite so I figured what better place to try it out then in a dr's office inside a hospital. He ate it and didn't have a reaction so I knew he was in the clear of being allerigic. We started giving rasins as a snack at about a year old and never had any issues with it. If your worried maybe ask the pedi about the proper age though.