Peanut allergy study raises concerns for Dr. Raj Bhardwaj

If your child has a mild reaction to peanuts, do not try introducing the nut to their diet — even if it could prevent them from developing an allergy later on.

That's the message from Calgary Eyeopener medical contributor Dr. Raj Bhardwaj when talking to host David Gray about a study published this week in the New England Journal of Medicine.

He says it could be a "total nightmare scenario." 

• Peanut allergies can be reduced in high-risk children, study suggests

"This study is groundbreaking for sure. But that's all it does is break ground," said the Calgary family and urgent care physician. "It hasn't laid the foundation [and] it hasn't built a structure around which we can safely introduce peanuts to potentially allergic kids."

The study suggests babies with a high risk of developing the allergy could be better off if they ate peanuts early in life rather than avoiding them. 

"Imagine you have an older child who has a peanut allergy and now you have six-month-old who doesn't have a peanut allergy. And your doctor says, 'Yeah, give the younger one some peanut butter,'" said Bhardwaj.

"Really? You're going to bring peanut butter into the house with your older kid having this deadly allergy? I'm not," he adds. 

For the full interview, watch the video above as Bhardwaj outlines his concerns.