Avoiding Common Food Allergies Through Early Introduction

Lovin Lil Mixins!

Food introduction is a scary thing – choking, allergies…. We now know that consistently making allergens part of your baby’s diet has been proven to help prevent food allergies. I don’t have a history of food allergies in my family, but I still want to make sure Charlie is exposed to as many foods as possible, early on. But how do you do that when your baby isn’t ready to eat solids?

One thing that helps is breastfeeding. “Research indicates that a mother’s diet can protect nursing newborns against food allergies (source and full article here).  But is it enough? Is there more we can do? And what if you’re not breastfeeding?  Thankfully, that’s where Lil Mixins comes in!

I met the founder, Meenal Lele, through Monarq start up incubator, last December in NYC.  A while back, her first son developed multiple food allergies.

“Soon after [her son developed allergies], the LEAP study came out and completely changed what we thought about allergies: they can be prevented. I never want any parent to feel the same despair I did. That’s why I’m on a mission to keep babies from developing allergies altogether.” (you can read more here)

At the time, I was pregnant and was already so overwhelmed about all the various things to do and prepare for baby — this seemed like a no brainer. So, though I had to wait a while, I finally got to test out her product for myself.

The AAP recommendds exclusively breastfeeding until 6 months, my pediatrician said we could begin starting some solids at 4 months. I began at 5.5 months because that was what was right for us. Regardless, Lil Mixins makes it easy for whatever stage you introduce, because it is simply a powder that can be mixed right into whatever you’re giving your child, beginning at 4 months.

I talked to my Pediatrician about Lil Mixins before giving it to Charlie. She said she was all for it, and was happy to see more ways for parents to safely introduce allergents.

We are doing a mix of Baby Led Weaning, and purees in this house. So, while egg is something I could technically give Charlie, I was comforted by being able to start with this first to make sure he wouldn’t have a reaction to egg, before actually giving him egg.

UPDATE: I tried giving him egg a week or two after starting Lil Mixins, and turns out, he wants nothing to do with egg–not a fan of the texture. What a relief that I can still keep giving him exposure to egg through LM, without having to battle it out in the high chair!

(I thought mine didn’t come with a scooper at first but turns out it was just buried.) This was so easy. I just scooped two scoops into his bowl, added a little pureed pumpkin, stirred, and voila!