When to Avoid Honey
Infants should not eat honey in the first year of life. Honey is the one identified and avoidable food reservoir of
Clostridium botulinum.
C. botulinum is the bacterial spore that causes infant botulism. Avoid giving honey to infants because it can lead to infant botulism. However, exposure to honey does not cause most cases of infant botulism today.
My infant was fed honey. What should I do?
We don't usually consider one honey exposure to be risky for getting infant botulism. Be aware that not every jar of honey has botulinum spores in it.
If in the next few weeks your infant is showing signs of infant botulism:
- Reach out to your infant's doctor immediately.
Signs of infant botulism include:
- Difficulty feeding (sucking and swallowing)
- A weak cry
- Decreased facial expression
- Loss of head control
- Overall muscle weakness
- Constipation
- Difficulty breathing
- Severe cases can lead to a need for a tube down the baby's throat to help them get air for babies unable to breathe.
If not treated, it can lead to paralysis and death.
For information on how and when to feed solid food to babies, see: