How do maternal sounds affect fetal development?

Recent studies have shown that the fetus’s sense of hearing begins to develop between the 24th and 27th week of pregnancy, as the cochlea becomes effective and linked to the brain, enabling the fetus to perceive external and internal sounds, process them, and store them in its neural memory. This stage demonstrates the importance of the mother’s vocal environment in enhancing the child’s linguistic and emotional development in the future.

The fetus hears sounds through the fluids surrounding it, where high frequencies are absorbed and low frequencies are transmitted more clearly, making sounds a “physical” experience in addition to being an ear sense. Internal sounds include the mother’s rhythm (her heartbeat, blood flow, and digestive movements), while external sounds represent a window into the world, with the mother’s voice being the most clear and influential.

Research indicates that exposure of the fetus to repeated sound leads to “habituation,” and exposure to certain melodic patterns builds neural representations in the fetus that remain stored in its memory for several months after birth. Excessive noise may also negatively affect the development of the auditory system, especially in cases of premature birth, which makes it necessary to maintain a quiet environment.

Experts provide practical advice to mothers to create an ideal audio environment inside the womb, most notably: talking to the fetus constantly to build the primary linguistic networks in its brain, listening to calm, regular music such as “Mozart’s music” to stimulate cognitive development, encouraging the father to talk or read near the mother’s belly to form an emotional bond, and avoiding sudden noise or screaming that may raise stress levels in the fetus.

Experts confirm that balance is the key, as it is recommended to create specific periods of calm vocal communication followed by periods of stillness, to ensure healthy development of the fetus’s auditory and psychological system.