Babies in the womb are big fans of carrots, but not so much of leafy greens — and it shows on their faces, researchers said in a new study published Thursday. Researchers at Durham University in northeast England said the findings are the first direct evidence that babies respond differently to different smells and tastes even before birth.
A team of scientists studied 4D ultrasound scans of 100 pregnant women and found that babies exposed to carrot flavor showed “smiley face” reactions. Those exposed to the cabbage flavor, on the other hand, showed more “crying” reactions. Lead postgraduate researcher Beyza Ustun said: “A number of studies suggest that babies can sense taste and smell in utero, but they are based on results after birth, whereas our study is the first to record these responses before birth.
As a result, we think that this repeated exposure to flavors before birth could help solidify food preferences after birth, which could be important when thinking about healthy eating messaging and the potential to avoid ‘food problems’ at weaning.” People at U fetuses, it is believed that this may occur through inhalation and ingestion of amniotic fluid in utero.
The study, published in the journal Psychological Science, involved scientists from Durham’s Fetal and Neonatal Research Lab and Aston University in Birmingham, central England. A team from the National Center for Scientific Research in Burgundy, France also got involved. The teams believe that the findings could deepen the understanding of the development of human taste and smell receptors, as well as perception and memory.
Research co-author Professor Jackie Blissett, of Aston University, said: “It can be argued that repeated prenatal exposure to a flavor can lead to a preference for those flavors experienced postnatally. In other words, exposing the fetus to less ‘favourite’ flavors such as cabbage can meaning they become accustomed to these flavors in utero.The next step is to investigate whether fetuses show less “negative” reactions to these flavors over time, resulting in greater acceptance of these flavors when babies first taste them outside the womb.
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