I am a postdoctoral researcher at the Developmental Psychobiology Lab. My work focuses on the very beginning of life, from pregnancy through the first two years, a sensitive period for children’s long-term health and development. I study how factors such as maternal diet, the microbiome, and stress during pregnancy affect babies before birth and shape their sensory, behavioural, and cognitive development.
At the BRC I am involved in projects including BIBO, SKIPPY and SMILEY, which follow families over time to understand how early experiences influence children’s development. In my previous work, I used 4D ultrasound imaging to understand the origin of flavour learning in utero and the long-term effects of maternal diet during pregnancy on infant food preferences. This research has been quoted and citer in several international media outlets, such as BBC, The Guardian and Zwangerenportaal.nl and has also drawn wide interest from parents around the world.
Ustun-Elayan, B., Blissett, J., Covey, J., Schaal, B., & Reissland, N. (2025). Flavor learning and memory in utero as assessed through the changing pattern of olfactory responses from fetal to neonatal life. Appetite, 208, 107891.
Ustun, B., Reissland, N., Covey, J., Schaal, B., & Blissett, J. (2022). Flavor Sensing in Utero and Emerging Discriminative Behaviors in the Human Fetus. Psychological science, 33(10), 1651–1663.
