When Can She Eat Nuts?

Hey A., I wouldnt' worry too much about it unless you or the dad have a history of allergies to nuts. I was worried because of the choking factor but the more I kept it away from my son the more he wanted them....so I let them be a special treat and only with someone....one by one! They are the best....jake is 3 now and I take trailmix everywhere we go!

my daughter was eatign almond butter by around 9 months. the reason for holding off on nuts (especially peanuts) is that some people think it reduces the risk of serious allergies, but that's just a theory. almons are very non-allergenic and it sounds like your daughter tolerated them fine. some people will disagree with me but i think after age one year even peanuts are fair game, but it depends on your family's medical history and your observation of your child (generally unwell or allergic children are at higher risk for a bad nut reaction). anyway, 20 months is a very reasonable time to introduce almonds if she is capable of chewing them. hope this helps!

Well, I know peanut butter is ok after the 1st year. I would assume that almonds would be ok too as long as she has the molars to chew them good. I would just watch her really close to make sure she chews them up good & doesn't choke on them. Teaching good eating habits, not too much/too big of a bite, now will help later on.

Hello A.,

You did not say how many teeth the little girl has. She needs to be able to chew them very well. You also have to watch carefully to make sure that she doesn't choke on the small pieces of nut.

I have never heard that you had to be a certain age to eat nuts but it makes sense that the child should be able to chew them well. R. T.

Hi, I have a two year old, and he loves nuts & seeds. I usually give him sliced almonds, or blanched & slivered almonds, or just one at a time (pistachios) or cut up small enough that he won't choke on them, & supervise the eating. He has 2 sets of molars, so I feel safe that he can chew them well, but he still needs monitoring that he doesn't take too much in his mouth at once. It's easy for kids to put too much in their mouth & not chew well, so just watch that.

It's also a good idea to only try one new food at a time, to make sure your child doesn't have an allergic reaction.

You might try pumpkin seeds as well, my son loves them & asks for them regularly. I only give him a handful at a time, or a small bowl. They are less of a choking risk, and even tho he doesn't chew them all completely (evidenced by his poop), he gets most of them, and they make a healthy snack. (They also help kill parasites, & even tho you might not think about this it's good to de-worm kids once in a while.)

I am a special ed teacher, and have dealt with the nuts issue many MANY times. As long as nut allergies do not run in your family, it is safe for your little girl to eat them now - and as long as she shows no sign of allergy, more power to her! Chances are she has already eaten a great deal of nut product in other foods (there are nuts in the strangest places in foods).

Three years old. I had/have the same situation with my daughter. She LOVES nuts. I, too, heard to wait a long while before feeding kids nuts (including the nut butters). So, I researched and spoke to her doctor and was told it was best to wait until they are three years old. At which time, kids are better able to chew nuts and they are more likely not to develop a nut allergy the longer they wait to consume them.

My husband is a ear, nose and throat doctor and becomes quite worried when I feed our 27-month daughter nuts. Even though we watch her very closely and are constantly reminding her to chew them well, he has removed many obstructed nuts in the air passages of children this age and stands by the 3yo milestone.

Hope this helps...

Dear A.,

I don't know, but you could try drgreene.com, it is a website with lots of choices for answers to questions. C. N.

As long as she doesn't seem allergic, it's probably fine. Just be aware, though, that peanuts are not the same as other nuts. Your daughter could still have a peanut allergy even though she does fine with almonds.
My son has a pretty bad peanut allergy (which we discovered a couple of weeks after he turned 2). I had waited to give him peanuts because he has excema and asthma, and I know food allergies often go along with those conditions. Does your daugher have any other allergies or conditions like that? If not, then she is most likely going to be ok with nuts. Just be sure to watch her carefully. Of course, there is no mistaking a peanut allergy - it's pretty severe.

If she's already had almonds and had no problem then you can probably continue to give it. One reason they recommend delay is due to concern for allergies and not wanting to elicit the allergy too early. If nut allergies run in the family, you may want to continue to delay but if not, almonds are a good source of nutrition but beware - they are a choking hazard!