JOINT STATEMENT Timing of introduction of gluten into the infant diet

1. In 2010, the Department of Health and Food Standards Agency asked the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) and the Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment (COT) to assess the evidence on timing of introduction of gluten into the infant diet and subsequent risk of developing coeliac disease or type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). The request was made in response to the publication of a European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies (NDA) Scientific Opinion on the appropriate age for the introduction of complementary food into infant diets in the EU; this included conclusions that were inconsistent with UK infant feeding advice.