| July 23, 2008 Like mother, like baby
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(NECN/ABC) - For years, nursing moms have suspected it's true, that what they eat can alter the flavor of their breast milk and change babies' reaction to it.
Now, a new study confirms their hunch - many different food flavors show up in human breast milk, giving babies a taste of what lies ahead.
Studies show that children often inherit their mothers' food preferences.
And new research suggests the link may be formed early, even before babies start eating solid foods.
Scientists in Denmark have discovered that FLAVORS in the FOOD eaten by nursing mothers are secreted in their breast milk, giving infants exposure to a WIDE VARIETY of foods.
For the study, 18 nursing moms swallowed capsules representing different flavors commonly found in foods - mint, banana, caraway seed and licorice.
Researchers later tested women's breast milk to see if they could detect the corresponding chemical compounds.
They found mint was the most stable - detectable in breast milk between 2 and 8 hours after consumption.
Banana was the most fleeting, gone after just 1 hour, but ALL flavors had vanished by the 8 hour mark.
Experts say the early experience with different tastes could mean that breastfed children are more likely than bottle fed infants to eat different foods.
Even if children don't end up sharing their mother's EXACT tastes in food, they are used to flavor changes and are more open to try new things.
ABC's Dr. Timothy
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