New research shows that babies respond to taste and smell in the womb

By looking at the baby's facial expressions, scientists have for the first time documented direct evidence
that babies respond differently to various smells and tastes in the womb.

The Fetal and Newborn Research Laboratory at Durham University in the United Kingdom led a study that performed 4D ultrasound scans of 100 pregnant women to see how their unborn babies reacted after touching the taste of food their mothers
ate.

The researchers looked at how the fetus reacted to these flavors for a short time after the mother ingested the taste of carrots
or kale.

Fuses exposed to carrots showed more "smiley" reactions, while fetuses exposed to kale showed more "crying face" reactions
.

Their findings could further deepen our understanding of the development of
human taste and olfactory receptors.

The researchers also believe that a pregnant woman's diet may affect a baby's taste preferences after birth and may have an impact
on establishing healthy eating habits.

Humans experience taste through a combination of taste and smell
.

Lead researcher Beyza Ustun, a graduate student at the Fetal and Newborn Research Laboratory in the Department of Psychology at Durham University, said:

"Many studies have shown that babies have a sense of taste and smell in the womb, but these studies are based on postnatal results, and our study is the first time to see these reactions
before birth.

"Therefore, we believe that repeated exposure to a variety of flavors before birth can help children establish food preferences before birth, which is important
for conveying the message of healthy eating and the potential to avoid 'food pickiness' when weaning.

"It's amazing to see unborn babies react to the taste of kale or carrots during the scan and share those moments with their parents
.

The research team also included scientists from the University of Aston in Birmingham, England, and the National Centre for Scientific Research at the University of Burgundy in France, who scanned mothers aged 18 to 40 at 32 and 36 weeks pregnant to observe the facial response
of the fetus to the taste of kale and carrots.

About 20 minutes before each scan, the researchers gave the mothers a capsule
containing about 400 milligrams of carrot powder or 400 milligrams of kale powder.

On the day of the test, the mothers also did not eat or drink any foods containing carrots or kale to control factors
that may affect the fetal response.

The facial response of the two flavors of the fetus, compared with the facial response of the fetus of the control group who was not exposed to either taste, indicated that exposure to a small amount of carrot or kale taste was sufficient to stimulate the response
.

Co-author Professor Nadja Reissland, director of the Fetal and Newborn Research Laboratory in the Department of Psychology at Durham University, oversaw Beyza Ustun's research
.

"Research conducted in my lab before shows that 4D ultrasound scans are a way to monitor fetal responses to understand how they respond to maternal health behaviors like smoking, as well as their mental health, including stress, depression and anxiety
.

"This latest study may have important implications for understanding the earliest evidence of a fetus's ability to perceive and distinguish between different tastes and smells from foods ingested by mothers
.
"

Co-author of the study, Professor Benoist Schaal of the National Centre for Scientific Research at the University of Burgundy in France, said:

"By looking at the fetus's facial response, we can hypothesize that a series of chemical stimuli enter the fetal environment
through the mother's diet.

"This could have important implications
for our understanding of the development of taste and olfactory receptors, as well as the associated perceptions and memories.
"

The researchers say their findings may also help provide mothers with information
about taste during pregnancy and the importance of eating a healthy diet.

Now, they are starting follow-up studies on these babies to see if the taste they experience in the womb affects their acceptance of different foods
.

Co-author of the study, Professor Jackie Bliset of Aston University, said:

"It can be argued that repeated prenatal exposure to taste may lead to a preference
for the taste experienced after childbirth.
In other words, exposing the fetus to tastes that they don't "like" too much, such as kale, may mean that they are used to those smells
in the womb.

"The next step is to study whether the fetus' 'negative' response to these tastes decreases over time, leading to a baby's more receptivity
to these tastes for the first time outside the womb.
"