CFAR experts unpack US study on peanut allergy prevention

Published

Thursday, November 6, 2025 - 9:00 AM

Landmark public health recommendations in the US to introduce peanut to infants in their first year of life, have resulted in a sharp decline in childhood food allergy rates, according to a new study published in Pediatrics.

The study, which looked at 40,000 children, found a 43 per cent decrease in peanut allergy diagnoses in the years after US guidelines were updated in 2017. The guidelines were changed to recommended infants were introduced to peanut from around six months, rather than delaying exposure until they were three years old.

Associate Professor Rachel Peters, Centre for Food Allergy Research (CFAR) Associate Investigator, said a similar trend was emerging in Australia.

“Here we found more than eight in 10 families introduced peanut products to their infants in the first year of life after Australian guidelines were introduced in 2016, compared with fewer than three in 10 before the guidelines,” Associate Professor Peters wrote in The Conversation.

“We are also starting to see a possible decrease in peanut allergy. In one study, peanut allergy decreased from 3.1% to 2.6% after the guidelines, about a 16% reduction.”

Unlike the US study, all Australian children were tested for possible peanut allergy using objective tests. This could account for the higher prevalence of peanut allergy in the Australian study.

The rate of increase in serious allergic reactions to food among children has also flattened since changes to Australian infant feeding guidelines, a MCRI-led study found.

Learn more in the coverage featuring our experts:

• Peanut allergies have dropped dramatically in the US. Is that likely to happen in Australia? – The Conversation (A/Profs Rachel Peters, Jennifer Koplin and Dr Des Shifti)
• Could we be turning the corner on peanut allergies? A new study offers hope – The Sydney Morning Herald/The Age (A/Prof Rachel Peters, Prof Kirsten Perrett
• Infant peanut feeding prevented thousands of children from developing allergies – SBS News (A/Prof Rachel Peters)
• Peanut Allergies Have Plummeted in Children, Study Shows - New York Times (Dr Victoria Soriano)
• Are allergen starter packs safe? ABC Health Report (Prof Mimi Tang)