Introducing potentially allergenic foods (cows milk, hen's egg, peanuts, tree nuts, soy and gluten) to the infant's diet before 6 months of age will not increase the incidence of wheeze or eczema in young children aged 4 years and younger. This study provides further evidence for introducing potentially allergenic foods to the infant's diet between 4 to 6 months of age when they are developmentally ready, irrespective of whether there is a family history of allergy or not. It also supports the Infant Feeding Advice given by the Australian Society for Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA)
A New Zealand study has found that children between the ages of 3 and 7 years who slept more had lower body weight than those children who slept less. Each additional hour of sleep between ages 3 and 5 years was linked to a lower Body Mass Index (BMI) at age 7 years.
The Australian Dietary Guidelines published in 2003 have been undergoing a much needed review. The National Health and Medical Research Council ( NH&MRC) has announced the 5 new draft guidelines which will be put out for public consultation later in the year. At this stage, the evidence underpinning them has not been published.