The American Academy of Pediatrics updated earlier suggestions, which made parents feel like they were not doing their best to prevent their children from food allergies, asthma and allergic rashes. The AAP says breast-feeding helps prevent babies' allergies, but there's no factual evidence to show that taking certain foods during pregnancy stage, either using soy formula or delaying introduction of solid foods beyond six months could also be helpful.

The doctors group advised mothers of infants in August 2000 that mothers with family history of allergies should avoid taking cow's milk, fish, eggs, peanuts and tree nuts while breast-feeding.

The advice, left parents feeling guilty for not avoiding risky foods whenever their children develop certain allergies.

Dr. Scott Sicherer of Mount Sinai School of Medicine's Food Allergy Institute in New York said, "They say, 'I shouldn't have had milk in my coffee. I've been saying, 'We don't really have evidence that it causes a problem. Don't be on a guilt trip about it.'"