Are all babies allergic to honey?

Question

My mom says that honey is one food you should never let a baby taste until it is at least 18 months old. If you do they will develop a rash clear through their digestive system and get diaper rash really bad. Has anyone else heard of this, do you know if it's true or not?

Answer 1

It is not a matter of being allergic. If you look on all packages of honey it has a warning label not to give to children under a year old. As seen here:
HONEY IS NOT TO BE GIVEN TO CHILDREN UNDER ONE YEAR OF AGE.
Honey may contain Clostridium botulinum spores that can cause infant botulism - a rare but serious disease that affects the nervous system of young babies (under one year of age). C. botulinum spores are present throughout the environment and may be found in dust, soil and improperly canned foods. Adults and children over one year of age are routinely exposed to, but not normally affected by, C. botulinum spores.
For more information, visit the National Honey Board website.

Answer 2

Babies are not allergic to honey. There is a bacteria (the one that causes botulism) in honey that a baby's digestive system cannot kill, and therefore the baby could die from food poisoning. Never give a baby under 1 year old honey.
Here's a link explaining it further:
http://www.askdrsears.com/faq/fit17.asp

I hope that this helps.

Answer 3

It has nothing to do with an allergy or a rash.

Babies should not be given honey prior to 12 mos of age as it can cause botulism. Honey often contains spores that, under the right circumstances, can cause botulism. When babies swallow them, the spores can turn into growing, multiplying bacteria that pump out a poison called botulinus toxin. This toxin is absorbed through their immature intestines and causes infant botulism. Some cases of infant botulism are mild, but some are fatal. I know a little girl who almost DIED of botulism!

Answer 4

ANY food allergy will cause this problem. Honey is no more allergenic than any other food group.

The concerns about honey was that it contained botulism spores that were a problem for infants under 6 months. To be overly cautious, physician don't want babies under a year to have honey. Don't freak if there was honey in your baby's cracker, however. Most cases of infant botulism are airborne (CA & PA).

Answer 5

Infants younger than 12 months are at risk of infant botulism from eating honey. Infant botulism is a rare but serious form of food poisoning.

Honey is a known source of bacterial spores that produce Clostridium botulinum bacteria. These bacteria are typically harmless to older children and adults. But when ingested by an infant, these bacteria make a toxin that can cause infant botulism. It's unclear why this occurs in infants and not in older children or adults.

Infant botulism affects a baby's nervous system and can result in death. Signs and symptoms of infant botulism include:

Persistent constipation
Floppy arms, legs and neck
Weak cry due to muscle weakness
Weak sucking and poor feeding
Tired all the time (lethargy)
Botulism spores may also be found in undercooked food, corn syrup and even maple syrup. For this reason, feeding an infant any of these foods is risky as well.

Answer 6

It's not so much that they are allergic. What happens is when the bees make honey they use their saliva, which carries a pathogen (i'm not sure what the name of it is) that is perfectly safe for an adult, but children under 18 months or so have not developed the tolerance for it at that point. It can be lethal to children that young. There are some exceptions to that rule, but it's better not to take the chance.

Answer 7

That's NOT the reason you don't give babies honey. It's because it could literally kill them - has to do with the bacteria naturally occuring in the honey which can give the baby botulism.
You REALLY need to do some reading and educate yourself better, considering your last few questions about babies and food. You not having information could really be dangerous to your baby. You can get information from public health, from your doctor, too, but PLEASE educate yourself about nutrition, and what is safe and unsafe for your baby - regarding food, and probably just baby raising.

Answer 8

This is true, it's very dangerous because there is bacteria in honey that a baby should not have. It's not about being allergic to it though. You should probably wait until closer to 2 years old.

Answer 9

Honey shouldn't be given to infants because of the botulism spores it may contain, not because of allergies.

Our pedi recommends no raw honey until after the age of 2.

Answer 10

They can get botulism from the honey. Their immune systems aren't developed enough to handle the bacteria in honey.