Biscuits and cake 'used to wean babies'

An Australian study found that almost one in four mothers had fed their infants biscuits, cakes and fruit juice by the age of six months.

Some of the babies exposed to fatty, sugary and salty foods were as young as four weeks old.

International guidelines recommend feeding babies exclusively on breast milk for the first six months of life.

Such an early introduction to poor diets might have long-term harmful effects and make young children pre-disposed to obesity, it is claimed.

Scientists from the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics at Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia, conducted regular phone interviews of 587 new mothers over a year.

Lead researcher Dr Jane Scott said: "Almost one in four mothers had introduced fruit juice, biscuits and cakes to their infants by six months of age.

"This is a worry because eating habits developed early in life usually continue throughout a person's lifetime - and an overweight child is much more likely to become an overweight adult."