Vegetable acceptance by infants: Effects of formula flavors

Abstract

Individual differences in acceptance patterns are evident as early as the child's first experiences with a particular food. To test hypothesis that the flavor of formula fed to infants modifies their acceptance of some foods, we conducted a within- and between-subjects design study in which two groups of 6- to 11-month-old infants were tested on two separate days. One group was currently feeding a milk-based formula whereas the other was feeding a protein hydrolysate formula, a particularly unpleasant tasting formula to adults that contains similar flavor notes (e.g., sulfur volatiles) with Brassica vegetables such as broccoli. In counterbalanced order, acceptance of pureed broccoli/cauliflower was determined during one test session and pureed carrots on the other. Although there were no group differences in the amount of carrots consumed, hydrolysate infants consumed significantly less broccoli/cauliflower relative to carrots when compared to those who were currently fed milk based formulas (F(1,72 df)=4.43; p=0.04). The mothers of hydrolysate infants were significantly more likely to report that their infants did not enjoy feeding the broccoli/cauliflower (54.2%) when compared to mothers of infants being fed milk-based formulas (28.0%; Chi-Square (1 df)=4.79; p=0.03). Such findings are consistent with prior research that demonstrated a sensory specific satiety following repeated exposure to a particular flavor in milk. We hypothesize that when infants are experiencing a flavor in milk or formula, in the short term, the preference that develops is specific to the context it is experienced in (e.g., milk). Over the longer term, the preference may generalize to other contexts such as solid foods. Hydrolysate infants were also significantly more likely to be judged by their mothers as being more active (F(1,69 df)=3.95; p=0.05) and hesitant (F(1,69 df)=6.55; p=0.01) when compared to those infants who were feeding milk-based formulas, a finding that further supports the hypothesis that mother-child dynamics surrounding early feeding impacts upon mothers' perception of their children's temperament.

Familial intergenerational and maternal aggregation patterns in nutrient intakes in the Lifeways Cross-Generation Cohort Study

“…Evidence suggests that infants' taste and preferences are formed with the earliest sensory perceptions from amniotic fluid (prenatal) or breast milk (postnatal) of the mother (34)(35)(36) . On the contrary, there is also evidence that formula feed flavours (37,38) and post-weaning feeding practices influence children's conditioning of tastes (36,39) . Thus it may be difficult to disentangle these early-life effects from one another.…”

Variety is the spice of life: Strategies for promoting fruit and vegetable acceptance during infancy

“…This underlines the importance of a controlled feeding procedure to assess infant's food acceptance and calls into question data obtained from maternal reports. Because the majority of infants were both breastfed and formula fed, which reflects current feeding practices [28], we were not able to assess the influence of history of milk feeding on fruit and vegetable acceptance, which is however likely to impact solid foods acceptance as suggested by previous studies [10,11,23,29]. Nor were we able to determine in the present study why mothers' ratings of infants' liking of the foods did not change after the exposure period, despite greater acceptance of the food.…”

Children’s liking and intake of vegetables: A school-based intervention study

“…For most vegetables, decreased liking (very likely due to boredom) was seen during or after the intervention followed by subsequent increases (a recovery effect). Actually, Mennella, Kennedy, and Beauchamp (2006) suggested that infants might become less responsive to a flavor that they have recently been extensively exposed to, but will develop increased acceptance for that flavor in the longer term. This finding is in line with Cooke (2007) suggesting that maximum effects of exposures may occur after a delay.…”