2023-05-19 03:00:53
Talking to your baby helps to shape the structure of his brain. British scientists have proven this. The more your child hears adults talking, the faster they will receive and understand signals. But does it also make sense to talk to your baby in a high-pitched voice?
“Talking to your children is very important because you literally shape their brains,” said Professor of Neurology John Spencer of the University of East Anglia. He and his team found a link between the amount of adult speech that babies and toddlers are exposed to and the myelin concentration in their brains. The higher the concentration, the better the nerve pathways transmit signals between nerve cells and the better the brain functions.
Child psychiatrist Binu Singh (KU Leuven) points out that speaking to babies is important because they are developing so quickly. “The input and interaction with the environment help determine how their potential is expressed. If you use a rich language, the child will know more words by his second birthday.”
In addition, talking to babies is also important for their socio-emotional development. “Even if your baby doesn’t know the words you use, the child is open to your intentions and your nonverbal language,” says Singh. “They do pick up something.”
“By talking to children, we help them to better understand their environment and themselves, which is important for their overall development and well-being. Language also invites the child to social interaction. Given the rapid growth in the earliest phase of life, it is important not to neglect that language input,” says Singh.
The British study focused on the amount of language babies were told. In addition, the quality of that language also determines brain development. Adults often spontaneously use a lilting voice in a high register with babies.
Professor of clinical psychology Martine Van Puyvelde (VUB) researched this. “We map out how the baby reacts to the mother’s voice and find that the more musical that voice is, the more the baby will respond.”
Van Puyvelde learned from her own research that the more musicality the mother puts into her voice, the more the baby also shows so-called ‘physiological regulation’: the heart rhythm slows down, the breathing and the nervous system become calmer.
“Our brain develops when it determines that something is important for survival. If the language is lilting, the baby feels it is important. The more musical the language, the more the child will react, often with his voice. The child is given a role in the interaction and language is thus given a function. That stimulates brain development and the social contact that is evolutionarily important for survival,” says Van Puyvelde.
And what about the usefulness of baby talk like ‘coolie coolie’ and ‘dedoodada’? Van Puyvelde: “The usefulness of that lies in the intonation and the musicality of that language. The more musical the sounds, the more a baby picks up on it.”
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