When can I give honey to my baby? 

Honey is definitely a “golden” food with so many benefits both for kids and adults. It’s rich in antioxidants, often used as cough medicine, helps improve liver function; is rich in minerals, vitamins, zinc, and has many other benefits for our health.  BUT honey is absolutely dangerous to babies and in no way should be given to a baby under 12months of age; meanwhile the best recommended age is 24 months, if we want to be more on the safe side.

Why is honey dangerous to babies?

Many believe that the reason why honey is dangerous for babies is because honey is a strong allergen, potentially causing a severe and dangerous allergic reaction. While this is true, it’s not the reason why studies and sources like NHS and AAP prohibit honey for babies under 12 months, and best advice for 24 months and up. The main reason for these recommendations is in fact botulism. 

Because of the way it is made, honey may contain dangerous spores that are typically found in dirt as well, which can easily reproduce in the baby’s intestines. This doesn’t happen in adults, or older kids because the bacterial flora of the intestines is mature and rich enough to get rid of these spores. But babies don’t have this, until 12 months of age at least. Due to the baby’s different developmental paste, we are on the safer side if we lean more towards 24months of age. 

Should you give honey to your child under 24months (always over 12months) please make sure that it is in truly small quantities. 

What is botulism? 

Botulism is an infection that occurs in the intestines of a baby due to the rapid reproduction rate of some spores that happen to be in dirt, honey (syrups as well). While reproducing these spores produce very dangerous toxins that can affect the nervous system of the baby, causing them to be severely sick. Botulism requires treatment and hospitalization, for more than a month on average, and has a fatality rate of about 2%. 

Even a very very small amount of honey can cause botulism: under 12 months, very few spores are more than enough to further reproduce and sicken the baby. 

The cases when botulism occurs in children between 12 and 24 months are rare but have happened, which is why the recommendation is to be cautious. 

Honey is truly a superfood, it can be a great natural remedy for the cough in children, but honey is dangerous for babies, so let’s be very cautious and use it properly, in order to get all of its benefits while avoiding all risks.