It is no secret that breastfeeding is the best food we can give the baby during its first months of life. We know that brings many benefits for healthy growth and development, and also protects them against certain diseases or reduces their chances of suffering them.
But in addition to being a superfood that is very good for its development, breast milk also greatly influences the feeding that the baby will subsequently have, since several studies have found that Babies who are breastfed are more likely to accept new flavors.
The studies
Research on the influence that breastfeeding has on the feeding of babies is something that has been studied for many years. Specifically, several studies have analyzed the influence that breast milk has on the acceptance or rejection of new flavors in the diet of babies when starting complementary feeding.
For example, a study conducted in 2001 and published in the journal Pediatrics, tested the hypothesis that the flavors detected in amniotic fluid or breast milk influenced the acceptance of foods with similar flavors. In this study, it was concluded that exposure to certain flavors improved the enjoyment of those same flavors during complementary feeding.
In Babies and more Babies fed with breast milk accept new foods betterAnother study conducted in 2007, evaluated the effects of breastfeeding and the mother's diet on the acceptance of a specific fruit and vegetable in infants four to eight months of age. In it, it was found that the babies of those mothers who had consumed these foods more frequently accepted them better.
A more recent study, published in 2016, analyzed the difference between babies fed with breast milk and babies who took formula, in the acceptance of new foods. In it, it was found that Children who were fed breast milk tend to eat more vegetables in the ablactation than those who were fed artificial milk.
This is how the mother's diet influences during breastfeeding
It has long been known that the mother's diet can pass the baby through breast milk, and there have even been other studies that analyze the different flavors presented by breast milk and that they change according to the food that mom takes.
All these studies confirm the theory that Babies become familiar with the flavors of the foods their mothers consume and that reach them through breast milk, subsequently making those flavors identified by them and therefore, accepting them in a better way.
In Babies and moreNew study on the flavors of breast milkThus, It is important that during breastfeeding the mother has a very varied diet, so that the baby knows through breast milk the greatest amount of flavors and gets used to them over time. In addition, this helps children to be exposed since they are infants to new flavors, such as vegetables, in a safe way.
We must clarify that, in several of the studies we have shared, researchers comment that the fact that babies identify those foods they already knew through breast milk does not necessarily mean that they will immediately love them.
Yes, they will be familiar and can even accept them more easily, but it is the responsibility of fathers and mothers continue to offer them frequently and patiently so that they continue to familiarize themselves with them and end up accepting them.
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