4 Positive Effects of Lullabies in Your Baby's Brain Development

Now, that you are a full-fledged mum, you must have already Googled a million things that you can do to help your child become smarter. In that list of to-dos may be giving them educational toys, reading to them frequently, sleeping 8 hours a day, eating brain-boosting food, communicating with them often, and finally singing lullabies to them.

You must have come across this last bit in your reading – the positive effects of lullabies on your baby’s brain development. You must have seen an article here and there advising you to play some classical music once you reach your second term of pregnancy because your baby has already developed their hearing and can hear the music you’re playing.

And we’re pretty sure that if we look through your YouTube searches today, we will find the phrases “best Mozart for babies,” “lullaby music for baby,” or “lullaby song for baby” at the top of that list.

Benefits of Playing a Lullaby in Baby’s Brain Development

And, it’s true. Music truly has plenty of benefits for our children. That is certainly not a myth. Music has always been a huge part of us regardless of how deep our musical influences are. That’s how we learned the alphabet, how to put ourselves in a mood for concentration, and so many more. 

In this article, we are going to discuss the different ways lullabies can positively impact your baby’s brain development, so you understand better why we’re highly recommending this practice.

It Puts Your Baby to Sleep

This is perhaps the most used keyword in any mum’s Google searches – how to put your baby to sleep. Because if your baby is already born and the reason you even found this article is because you haven’t figured out the secret to putting your baby to sleep without breaking a sweat.

One of the things that will always come up in your search for the best techniques to put babies to sleep is putting on some music. Why? Because lullabies help babies fall asleep. It doesn’t matter what the lyrics of the song are. Babies have no care for that up until they are toddlers who are learning how to speak bit by bit. It’s the sound that puts them to sleep.

Apparently, music has a way of regulating our emotions. When a child, for instance, refuses to sleep, putting on some music will turn their sour mood into a much more positive one. This explains why we turn to songs when we’re heartbroken or need some music while we jog. It’s to set our mood. The same applies to your children as well.

Another reason music calms babies down is because they are reminded of the sounds that they hear when they were inside their mothers’ wombs. That is why whatever music you play while you are pregnant with your child is also the same music that they respond to after they are born.

To add to that fact is the benefit of using music not only to put babies to sleep but also to help them sleep better. Who doesn’t want that? With better sleep, your babies’ brains have all night (and all afternoon, if they have their afternoon naps) to recuperate and develop as much as they can, which now leads us to our next point.

Establishes a Sleeping Routine

The keyword here is Pavlov – in other words, conditioning. If you sing your chosen lullaby enough say in a week every night before you put them to bed, your baby will most likely associate your lullaby with the idea of sleeping. That is yet another reason why lullabies are a godsend for first-time parents.

Many health practitioners advise parents, old and new, to keep establishing a sleeping routine because that will help children sleep faster. By routine, you have to do the same things over and over – turn down the lights, drop some lavender essential oils into your diffuser,  put on a warm and comfy blanket for your baby, and sing your lullaby. Try to do this routine consistently and consecutively and notice your child fall asleep faster and faster.

Lullabies Stimulate Language and Cognitive Development

The best types of music for your babies’ development are the ones that help them learn how to communicate and think. This is where the lyrics matter. If you’re not teaching your baby how to say “Mummy” or “Mama” enough in a day already, getting them to listen to songs that have such words will help them learn how to say “Mummy” or “Mama.”

And the more repetitive the words are in a song and how many times you make your baby listen to the track, the better they are at being familiarised with such words.

Fun Tip: To test whether the songs you’ve been playing repeatedly to your kid for over a year now truly develop their cognition, try singing the same songs to them and leaving out a few words. Watch how they fill the missing words or sounds to your songs because of how familiar they are to them.

Another key role of lullabies or music in your child’s brain development is how it can help them improve their memory. Notice how we can better remember things when they’re said in a song than if we read them from a book.

In fact, that’s why some studying techniques advise creating a song out of a reviewer because it makes studying much more manageable. How is it possible that we can recall every single word to Eminem’s “Cleaning Out My Closet” but struggle to remember details from a history book? The main difference is that Eminem’s story is embedded in our memory through his song. 

It’s a curious thing how when we suddenly hear a familiar tune, a certain memory pops into our head and that song is forever associated with that memory. That’s how powerful music can be.

ALSO READ:

Why You Should Listen To Music During Pregnancy

When Do Babies Start Interacting With You? Here’s What You Need to Know About It

Songs to Share With Your Baby for Sleep, Learning, and Dancing – Add Them to Your Playlist Now!

It Strengthens Parent-Baby Bond

Lullaby Spotify Playlist Recommendations

• The Secret to Getting Your Baby to Sleep by Anna Steinhoff
• Sleep Baby Sleep
• Lullaby Music that Helps Your Baby Sleep
• Relaxing Baby Sleep Playlist
• Sleep Baby Sleep: The Bleep Guarantee Playlist
• Classic Baby Sleep Music