Talking To Baby Helps Development In Womb

Women are always encouraged to speak to their baby bumps during pregnancy. Many think that the sole purpose of doing this is so that mothers-to-be will be better able to bond with their babies once they are born.

As it turns out though, not only does talking to babies while expecting help to forge that attachment between mothers and babies but helps babies to develop when they are in the womb. This makes communication from mother to the baby very important when expecting.

Speaking to babies before they are born helps them able to identify who their mothers are when they are born. Just hearing the same voice outside the womb that little ones have been listening to over the course of several months can help to calm babies and make them feel safe even though the new world they are experiencing is overwhelming and potentially scary. By doing simple things such as reading, talking about the day, singing, or even having one-sided conversations with babies during pregnancy women are not wasting their time. They are instead making the transition from the womb to the outside world easier on their babies. And when that is paired with helping them to develop, it comes as a surprise that talking to babies while expecting is not recommended to all women from the beginning of their pregnancy journey to the end.

RELATED: How We Talk To Babies Can Have Long-Lasting Benefits For Their Brain Development

Here is how talking to babies helps them to develop when they are in the womb.

Helps Speech & Language Development

Consistent talking to babies can pay off in the months after little ones are born. This is because, according to AptaClub, babies who were talked to while in utero were exposed to the different pitches of words spoken. Something that can help babies understand their native language quicker than those who were not spoken to while in the womb.

Part of what helps babies with their language development is the fact that they have a preference for the language their mothers speak, according to the publication. This means that when the babies’ mothers’ language is spoken around them after birth, they are more apt to pay attention to those speaking it than those speaking another language. This shows that “steps towards speech and socialization” are being made. All because of the foundation for speech and language development learned while mothers talked to their babies while expecting.

Can Lower Baby’s Stress Levels

When babies hear their mothers’ voices in the womb, they eventually come to the conclusion that the voice they hear all the time is a safe one. One that keeps babies healthy and loved. And because of this, the attachment and bond that babies have for their mothers grow daily. It becomes very important when babies are born.

According to Children and Young People’s Health Services, hearing mothers’ voices during pregnancy is what helps to make them feel “safe and secure.” It is the very matter of hearing it and the voice being positive the majority of the time that benefits babies the most. The content of what is said does not matter.

Because of this, per the publication, ways that mothers can make their voices known to their babies to help bond with them include:

• Telling little ones what mothers are working on
• Telling babies how mothers are feeling
• Reading off a grocery list
• Singing songs
• Reading nursery rhymes
• Reading a magazine
• Reading a children’s book

By doing any of these with consistency, mothers are lowering their babies’ stress levels while they are in utero. Something that will eventually be translated to being done in the outside world once babies are born.

Helps Baby Get Used To A Second Voice

By talking to babies during pregnancy, mothers can introduce them to others who are part of the family before little ones are even born. Something that can make babies more comfortable with their secondary parents when they have to be cared for by them versus their mothers.

According to CloudNine, getting babies used to the parent not carrying them during pregnancy is necessary so that when they hear a voice other than their mothers, babies will still find themselves feeling safe and secure.

Further still, per the publication, for women who need to have a surrogate, talking to the baby bump before babies are born helps babies to recognize the voices of those who will care for them. This will make the transition from carrying babies to handing them over to biological ones an easier process for all involved.

Source: Children and Young People’s Health Services, AptaClub, CloudNine