Due to a lack of knowledge on the causes of gluten sensitivity, we do not currently have the means to prevent it.

Ongoing research

Based on epidemiological data^3-6 which stemmed primarily from a period of increased gluten sensitivity in Sweden in the early 1980s, researchers believe that parents can minimize the risk of their child having the disease by adopting simple nutritional measures:

• Practice breastfeeding.
• Continue breastfeeding while introducing foods containing gluten.
• Introduce cereals at the recommended age (not before 3 months of age nor after 7 months^2,6).

Research published in 2014 nevertheless sheds a different light. In a randomized trial in 944 infants with a celiac parent received gluten vs. placebo between the ages of 16 and 24 weeks. There was no significant difference in the proportion of children who later developed celiac disease at age 3 (5,9% vs. 4,5%)¹⁵.

In another clinical trial in 823 infants always with at least one parent with celiac disease, the introduction of cereals at 6 months vs 12 months had no effect on the incidence of the disease at the age of 5 years (16% ). Breastfeeding also seemed to have no effect¹⁶.

Therefore, the precise moment when the cereals are introduced into the diet does not seem to have a noticeable influence: follow the usual recommendations. As for breastfeeding, its benefits are so important, for other reasons, that it should still be strongly recommended.