Have you ever wondered what your baby is hearing while she waits patiently to make her debut into the world? Can she hear you worrying about whether or not you'll be a good mom? Did she hear you and your partner arguing about how to put the crib together? You may think it's all just the whooshing sound of amniotic fluid in there, but here's what your baby can hear in utero.
According to What to Expect, at around week 16 of your pregnancy, your baby's ears have developed enough to be able to begin detecting some noise. And baby's hearing will improve as the weeks progress, until week 24, when many babies will begin to turn their heads in response to certain voices.
So keep talking to your baby and let him know how excited you are to meet him. According to Parenting, while he may not able to make out the specific words you're saying, he is hearing the sounds that are happening both inside and outside of your body (yes, he can hear your stomach when it's ready for lunch). And as the weeks go by, baby is learning to recognize the sound of his parent's voices. After all, he's definitely going to be hearing a lot of them when you're nagging him to clean up his room.
So here is what and how your baby hears things when they're still in the womb.
1Muffled Sound
According to What to Expect, the sounds your baby hears in utero are muffled. This is because the baby is surrounded by amniotic fluid and the various layers of your body.
2Your Heartbeat
According to Modern Mom, babies can hear the sound of their mother's heartbeat while inside the womb. As a matter of fact, from baby's perspective, the sound is about as loud as a vacuum cleaner.
3Your Voice
As What to Expect points out, the sound of the mother's voice is clearest to baby while he is in the womb. This is because the sound of her voice reverberates throughout her body when she speaks.
4Language
According to Parenting, babies are beginning to learn their native language while still in the womb. It has been proven that babies will respond more to voices speaking in their mother's native language than those speaking in a foreign language.
5Avoid Playing Music On Your Bump
If you're not a fan of classical music, you can breathe a sigh of relief. According to Pregnancy and Baby, there is no evidence that playing classical music for your baby while in the womb will make him smarter. In fact, there is some concern that using speakers to pump music directly into your baby bump can do more harm than good by disrupting your baby's sleep pattern.