A Baby's Taste for Fish

This article is about how a University of Illinois food science professor, Susan Brewer, believes that there are two reasons why seafood is essential in a young child’s life. The first reason is that babies need omega-3 fatty acids, which are found in seafood, for their brain, nerve, and eye development. It is proven that when they are no longer being breast fed or on formula, they do not obtain much omega-3 fatty acids anymore. If they do not gain much omega-3 fatty acids, then it will not help prevent coronary artery disease when they are older. The earlier you start giving children seafood, such as salmon, the more likely they will enjoy it as they grow up and eat it more often to obtain the omega-3 fatty acids.

In order to make the meal more nutritious and healthy, Brewer had to perform experiments to see which type of salmon was better suited; and she even decided to mix in the salmon’s bone and roe(eggs) into the meal. To find the right fish, Brewer stated that, “When salmon swim upstream to spawn, their flesh begins to get very soft. At that point, the meat is not firm enough for fillets, but it's perfect for baby food.” After she had to choose either pink salmon or red salmon, and she decided that red salmon was better because it survived the food process better than the pink salmon. She added the salmon bone, by grinding it into powder, because it provided calcium that is very essential in bone building for babies. The salmon roe provides high amounts of protein, vitamin D, and omega-3 fatty acids. After allowing 107 parents, of preschoolers, to taste the meal, 81 percent agreed that they would give it to their children and they also found no difference with the taste of the meal compared to other baby foods.

"Our goal is to deliver maximum nutrition in an entrée that's aesthetically pleasing, and these studies show that we can do just that," Brewer stated. The purpose of this effort was to allow babies to get more omega-3 fatty acids in their systems so that they can grow up being healthy. Research shows that a baby’s brain is 50 percent DHA, and because their livers are undeveloped, they cannot get enough DHA to supply to their nerve tissues; so they have to obtain it through their food.

Source: University of Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences. "Salmon Baby Food? Babies Need Omega-3s and a Taste for Fish, Scientist Says." Science Daily 24 August 2010. 25 August 2010 .