How many times have you watched your newborn baby while they’re sleeping? Just watching their little chests rise and fall and seeing the expression of contentment on their faces. Isn’t it wonderful to think that it was your lullaby that helped them get there? So different from the moments of fractious behavior at times during the day?
Enjoying your baby involves every moment. Even better than the gentle sleep, is that moment when they open their eyes and look at you, their still unfocused eyes searching for yours.
The key to your newborn baby’s development is to get enough of the correct type of sleep. Don’t underestimate the role of lullabies in newborn sleep: they have both psychological and physiological effects on their growth, depending on the sleep quality and duration.
Why is sleep so important for your newborn?
You are likely to hear or read a lot about how sleep is so important, especially for a growing baby. It is while they are sleeping that a lot of development takes place.
In fact, the reason that we sleep is not very well understood. Although we may not know the exact reasons for sleep, it is clear that insufficient sleep has adverse effects on all of us. In a newborn, the central nervous system (CNS) can be affected by too little sleep. This means, of course, that there can be a whole lot of implications for development of the body, because everything is linked to, or affected by, the CNS in some way.
Insufficient sleep leaves us feeling irritated, unhappy and, often, frustrated. It’s the same with a newborn, although they may not be able to express their emotions so clearly. Enough sleep will leave them feeling more relaxed and emotionally more at peace.
The bottom line is that good sleep is important for your newborn to develop both physiologically and psychologically.
What are lullabies?
A lullaby is a particular type of song that has a gentle rhythm, simple words and a soothing sound. They are slow and gentle songs that develop specifically to be sung to a baby or child at night to help settle them and encourage them to sleep.
Singing lullabies helps your newborn feel nurtured and emotionally settled
It seems to be a natural instinct for parents to sing to their babies, especially when they are upset, or cannot sleep. In fact, singing is a very simple way to help your baby feel nurtured. It brings you and your infant closer in a safe and familiar cocoon.
When a mother sings to her baby, it is an indication that she is following her mothering instincts, which make the baby feel secure. As they are lulled into sleep, they feel safe and ready for a peaceful sleep.
Incorporating a baby’s name into lullabies fosters a deep personal connection, aids in early name recognition, and enhances the soothing effects due to the felt intimacy. Rare baby names can offer uniqueness and further personalize this experience for the child.
Singing has a positive effect on your baby’s oxygen saturation levels
Singing to your baby can improve their oxygen saturation levels, which is a measure of the amount of oxygen in the blood. This is important, as oxygen carries energy to the cells all over the body. In a growing baby, this can be very important in relation to the development of their digestive track and their brain.
When your baby is active, their body uses energy and oxygen. When they sleep, more of that energy can go into building their cells.
Effectively, because singing a lullaby to your child can help them to sleep, it has the effect of allowing more oxygen to get around the body more effectively. This is an important part of the growth and development of the body.
Hearing lullabies helps your baby develop their breathing and posture
It stands to reason that a child who sleeps comfortably and deeply will breathe easily, which means that hearing lullabies have an effect on the development of their lungs and breathing in general. A relaxed sleeping position can also be part of the way their posture improves as they grow.
Singing lullabies to your baby can help them develop language skills
When you sing lullabies to your baby, it can help to stimulate the growth of that part of the brain linked to language development. They learn new words from the songs, which they internalize and can begin to use earlier than the average child.
Your premature baby benefits from being sung to sleep
Premature babies, in particular, can benefit from having lullabies sung to them. The results of the singing show the babies sleep better, which helps with their growth.
The singing of lullabies and consequent good sleep, helps the babies improve the amount of nutrition they take in, which also helps them develop physically.
