Plenty is said about a baby's sight and hearing, rarely about their nose and tongue. Yet these two chemical senses are among the first to be operational. They guide the newborn long before they can see clearly or grasp an object.
Two senses in place before birth
Taste buds form as early as the first trimester of pregnancy. Olfactory receptors become functional during the second trimester.
The foetus swallows amniotic fluid, whose composition varies with the mother's diet. In this way they become familiar with a first repertoire of aromas.
The continuity between before and after
Aromas from the mother's diet also pass into breast milk. A breastfed baby therefore meets sensations they already know, which softens the transition.
That continuity partly explains why first food discoveries are never entirely new. The ground has been prepared for months.
What a newborn perceives
A baby is born with a marked preference for sweetness and a spontaneous rejection of bitterness. This asymmetry has a simple biological logic.
Sweet signals energy, bitter signals potential risk. The starting repertoire is therefore a safety filter, not a final verdict on taste.
Smell as an emotional landmark
A newborn recognises their mother's smell within a few days. That recognition contributes to settling and to orienting towards the breast or bottle.
It is also why a cloth carrying a familiar smell reassures some babies. The same mechanism explains attachment to a comforter, which we cover in our article on the transitional object.
How preferences are built
Taste is not fixed at birth. It changes through repeated exposure, without pressure or reward.
The repetition rule
A food refused once is not a food rejected forever. It often takes several spaced-out presentations before a new vegetable is accepted.
Offer without forcing, remove without comment, present again a few days later: the method is slow but robust. It respects the child's pace rather than the meal's.
Food neophobia
Between 18 months and 3 years, many children become wary of unfamiliar foods. This phase is normal and temporary.
It matches the moment when the child moves around alone and could put anything in their mouth. Caution about taste then plays a protective role.
Supporting discovery day to day
Sensory development is not limited to the plate. It runs through handling, smell and texture.
Let them touch
A child who squashes, smells and spreads a food is exploring it. That tactile exploration often precedes acceptance by taste, as we explain in our article on touch in babies.
Vary without overloading
One new food at a time is enough. The rest of the meal should stay familiar so that novelty does not become a source of tension.
Official guidance on introducing foods is set out in our article on weaning according to ANSES. Bath time also offers another sensory setting, covered in our article on sensory development through water.
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