While there is no flick of doubt left that mother’s milk is perhaps the best thing for a child’s development, another study has affirmed that spoon fed babies are likely to develop unhealthy eating habits at later stage.

It has been claimed by a team from the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom. While children are often directed to what to eat and not to eat, it is necessary that parents pay significant attention to some basic facts about their healthy upbringing. It has been made clear that babies must be allowed to finger-feed themselves so that they can grow healthy.

For the study, the team roped in 155 children ages 20 months to 6 years old, and divided them into two groups. The first one was told to eat food with fingers, while another one was spoon-fed with pureed foods. The team concluded that those who were directed to finger-feed themselves had consumed more carbohydrate-rich food as compared to the other group which gorge on sweets. It is necessary that such small habits are taken care of well so that health concerns at later stage could be averted in the first place.

"With spoon feeding there is the temptation to get into them whatever is left in the bowl or the jar”, said the lead researcher, Dr. Ellen Townsend. "But self-control of feeding may also be a factor. You are handing over control and letting the baby decide how much they want to eat”.

However, the study being done on small group cannot be taken as conclusive. There is need for extensive research being done on the same issue to make conclusive assertions about the same.

It is believed that by allowing the babies to feed themselves, there are good chances that they would be able to judge their craving for a particular food. There is need for parents to see if altering weaning patterns can make their babies choose a more healthy food.