A survey by Baby Sensory has found that the vast majority of parents are unaware of the risks involved when playing music to their unborn child. Worryingly the survey of over 250 people found that 89 per cent were unaware that the amniotic fluid within the womb actually doubles the level of decibels from 60 to 120 decibels.Baby Sensory founder and baby development expert, Dr Lin Day is not surprised by these findings. “It is widely researched and publicised that playing music to an unborn child helps mother and child bond and assists with brain development, which I fully support. However, the problem with playing the headphones directly on the abdomen is that the amniotic fluid works as a conductor of sound and can amplify the music which causes it to be far louder for the baby. Many people will turn up the volume believing that it needs to be loud to penetrate the abdomen which can be dangerous. This can, in some circumstances, lead to hearing problems to the child from birth.”
“Parents need to be educated about this issue and practice alternative methods of playing music to their unborn child such as low background music on a stereo or even singing to their bump. Then once welcomed to the world your baby can engage in many fun and educational activities involving music which can help development and intelligence in later life”, advises Dr. Lin Day.
Baby Sensory is the only provider of baby development classes designed specifically for babies from birth to 13 months. The classes are run in over 200 locations throughout the UK and currently one in 55 babies born in the UK attends Baby Sensory classes. Classes are also run in twelve countries, including the USA, Australia and Spain and, most recently, in China. The Baby Sensory programmes have been developed in the UK by Dr. Lin Day (PhD. M. Phil. PGCE. BSc. Dip. Ed), who has worked with babies and young children throughout her career.
Baby Sensory state that all activities are excellent for developing physical, social and emotional, and language skills, co-ordination, awareness of the world, a love of music and the concentration needed for further development. The programme is also suitable for babies with physical or learning impairments. For more information, see www.babysensory.com.