Comforting smell is why a toddler doesn't want his favorite blanket washed. Taste in babies is just as fascinating. The fetus experiences tastes in the amniotic fluid according to what the mother has eaten. This affects the babies taste preferences after birth. Infants can taste many flavors but prefer sweet.
Sweets activate pleasure chemicals, lowers a baby's heart rate, and reduces crying.
Breast milk is high in sugar and the fats needed for myelinating neurons. The assumption is that these children will be more likely to eat a wide variety of foods. A newborn can see clearly only about 8 inches, just enough to see mother's face while cradled at her breast. Babies see movement better than color distinctions, and prefer high contrasts rather than gradations. In six months, color vision and eye movements have developed.