Experts have said that mothers should not overfeed the newborns. According to a study, increase in weight during babyhood can make the babies plump at a later stage. The study said that the newborns, who were given breast milk that is rich in nutrients possessed greater body fat mass, compared to those who were given standard formula.

In earlier studies, a connection between over-nutrition during infancy and obese adults in animals was seen.

A team based at the University College London Institute of Child Health discovered that in five to eight-year-olds who had milk rich in nutrients, the body fat mass was 22% to 38% more, in comparison to those who were given standard formula.

Professor Atul Singhal from the MRC Childhood Nutrition Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, who fronted the study, said that mothers should breastfeed their babies.

He said, "It's easier to regulate appetite and harder to overfeed breastfed babies. If they can't breastfeed they shouldn't overfeed because babies should not put on too much weight too quickly".

The researchers said that weight gain during babyhood might be the reason for over 20% of the problem of obesity in adults.

The study appeared online in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.