You Are What You Eat (And What Mom Ate, Too)
June 6, 2001 -- Pregnant and lactating women, take note. Now there is one more reason to watch what you put in your mouth: you may be influencing your child's future palate. New research shows that infants exposed to a certain flavor in the womb or through breast milk later enjoyed that flavor when they were ready for solid foods.
It is known that during pregnancy, flavors from the mother's diet are transmitted to the fluid surrounding a developing baby. Since the fetus also swallows this amniotic fluid, it already may be experiencing the typical flavors of a culture's cuisine before leaving the womb. In a similar fashion, the tastes in a mother's diet will also be transmitted to the infant via breast milk.
Researchers at Philadelphia's Monell Chemical Senses Center wondered if this early experience with certain flavors influenced a child's acceptance and enjoyment of similarly flavored food later down the road.
"This study followed from a number of other studies that we have done, where we have shown that the flavor of mother's milk really reflects the diet of the mother. So, human milk really reflects the culture into which the baby is born; it contains all the flavors and spices that the mother is eating," lead author Julie Mennella, PhD, tells WebMD. "And we have been able to show over the years that some of these flavors, too, are being transferred to amniotic fluid."
Mennella is a member of the Monell Chemical Senses Center.
In the study, published in June's Pediatrics, Mennella and collegues looked at whether exposure to the flavor of carrots in the womb or through breast milk affected the acceptance of carrot-flavored cereal when the baby was weaned at 6 months of age.
The researchers recruited 46 women who were in the last trimester of pregnancy and assigned them to one of three groups. Group 1 was instructed to drink a certain amount of carrot juice during the last trimester; group 2 was instructed to drink the carrot juice during the first months of breast feeding; and group 3 was told to drink water and no carrot juice.
You Are What You Eat (And What Mom Ate, Too)
June 6, 2001 -- Pregnant and lactating women, take note. Now there is one more reason to watch what you put in your mouth: you may be influencing your child's future palate. New research shows that infants exposed to a certain flavor in the womb or through breast milk later enjoyed that flavor when they were ready for solid foods.
It is known that during pregnancy, flavors from the mother's diet are transmitted to the fluid surrounding a developing baby. Since the fetus also swallows this amniotic fluid, it already may be experiencing the typical flavors of a culture's cuisine before leaving the womb. In a similar fashion, the tastes in a mother's diet will also be transmitted to the infant via breast milk.
Researchers at Philadelphia's Monell Chemical Senses Center wondered if this early experience with certain flavors influenced a child's acceptance and enjoyment of similarly flavored food later down the road.
"This study followed from a number of other studies that we have done, where we have shown that the flavor of mother's milk really reflects the diet of the mother. So, human milk really reflects the culture into which the baby is born; it contains all the flavors and spices that the mother is eating," lead author Julie Mennella, PhD, tells WebMD. "And we have been able to show over the years that some of these flavors, too, are being transferred to amniotic fluid."
Mennella is a member of the Monell Chemical Senses Center.
In the study, published in June's Pediatrics, Mennella and collegues looked at whether exposure to the flavor of carrots in the womb or through breast milk affected the acceptance of carrot-flavored cereal when the baby was weaned at 6 months of age.
The researchers recruited 46 women who were in the last trimester of pregnancy and assigned them to one of three groups. Group 1 was instructed to drink a certain amount of carrot juice during the last trimester; group 2 was instructed to drink the carrot juice during the first months of breast feeding; and group 3 was told to drink water and no carrot juice.
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