Giving babies gluten might prevent coeliac disease
Infants who had gluten at four months didn't develop coeliac disease aged three: studyÂ
Introducing high-dose gluten to babies at four months of age may help prevent coeliac disease, a randomised trial suggests.
Earlier studies have found no effect of early introduction of gluten on the risk of developing coeliac disease, but those studies used a gluten dose of under one gram a week, note Dr Gideon Lack of King’s College London, UK and colleagues in JAMA Pediatrics.
They compared exclusive breastfeeding with the introduction of six allergenic foods, including gluten at 3.2g/week, alongside breastfeeding to infants’ diets from age four months.
This analysis included 1004 children who were tested for anti-transglutaminase type 2 (TG-2) antibodies at three years.
