If you're worried about your baby developing eczema and food allergies, you are not alone.

These conditions are on the rise, and they can significantly and negatively affect the quality of life and health of your child, and your entire family.

There are strategies that can help lower the risk that your baby will develop eczema and food allergies. Here are my top 9!

While pregnant and breastfeeding, mom can eat a varied and healthy diet (whole, real foods) that includes the top allergens (as long as mom isn't allergic).
While pregnant and breastfeeding, mom can eat lots of omega-3-rich fish (salmon, halibut, mackerel) and other sources of omegas like flax and chia seeds, and avocados. Taking omega-3 supplements that contain DHA and EPA can help.
While pregnant and breastfeeding, mom can supplement with vitamin D. Levels should be checked pre-conception and in early pregnancy with supplementation adjusted accordingly, and go for follow-up blood tests after 3 months.
What's happening in your gut will impact your baby's risk of developing allergic conditions and their overall health. Check gut health, preferably pre-conception, and address existing imbalances. If you have gut problems, now is the time to address them! If you are pregnant, you can explore what's happening in your gut; options for addressing identified imbalances however aren't as robust.
While pregnant and breastfeeding, and during infancy for your baby (and ongoing), supplement with a probiotic, like MegaSporeBiotic. It can be taken during pregnancy, breastfeeding, and given to your baby. Get your MegaSporeBiotic HERE.
Moms and moms-to-be, get your nutrient levels checked, preferably pre-conception. You are growing a human. Your body needs fuel to do this and everything else it’s supposed to. Take a prenatal and supplement additionally where needed based on your test results.
Introduce solids to your baby on time, which for most is by 6 months. Introducing solids too soon or later increases the risk of developing food allergies. If there isn't an existing allergy, introduce the top allergens to your baby during this time too. Keeping these out unnecessarily increases the risk of developing an allergy to them.
If your baby has eczema, it's even more vital that allergenic foods are introduced on time, as long as there isn't an existing allergy to them. Those with eczema have an even greater risk of developing food allergies.
Lower your stress levels. Research points to a higher risk of children developing eczema if their mothers are exposed to stress during pregnancy. Stress factors include perceived and psychological stress before conception, prenatal anxiety and/or depression, adverse life events, and work-related stress during pregnancy. It’s also been found that babies can pick up on their mother’s stress and show corresponding changes in their bodies.

References

doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.i6685
https://www.allergy.org.au/patients/allergy-prevention/ascia-how-to-introduce-solid-foods-to-babies
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5876940/
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0956797613518352