We learned about food long before we ever started feeding ourselves. In fact, our concern with food began even before we were born. So let's go back to the beginning - to that tiny mass of protoplasm within the uterus, sustained by the nutrients in the mother's blood, awaiting its entry into the big world outside.

Until its birth, the fetus is warm, secure, and totally dependent for all its needs, which nature so generously fills. This is not to say, however, that it is completely safe. Mother's diet and mental state are subtly exerting their influence upon the unborn child. The mother's food needs to be rich in the vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals essential to growth, and unadulterated by harmful substances and contaminants that may retard the normal development of the vulnerable fetus.

Once it arrives on the scene at birth, the child spends the first months of life in two basic activities - sleeping and eating. The quality of its food is of great importance, not only in keeping it alive and well now, but in setting the stage for later eating habits. Equally important is the way food is supplied. Traumatic or unsatisfying feeding experiences may color the infant's view of the world and have far-reaching effects upon its physical and mental health.

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