Early, Early Learning...

As soon as a baby is born, her senses become flooded with the sounds, tastes and smells of her new environment. It often seems to those who work with infants that, like a sponge, babies are born ready to take in all this information. Yet, as scientists develop new techniques to study the fetal environment, they're discovering that the learning process often starts well before birth. The term "early learning" has taken on a whole new meaning.

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Did You Know?

Flavors such as anise, garlic, cumin, curry and fenugreek (a component of Indian and Thai curries) have been shown to transfer to the amniotic fluid.

Midwives and obstetricians have often reported that they can detect the scent of dominant spices in the mother's diet within the amniotic fluid at the time of birth.

Fetuses are able to hear through sound conduction in the bones of the head, rather than through the auditory canal. This is similar to how adult humans hear under water.

Male voices are transmitted more clearly to the fetus than female voices, although the mother's voice is heard loudest of all.

Fetal movements are livelier when music is played.

Wiring-Up Baby

The capacity to learn is tied up with the development of sensory organs and brain structures. These structures develop at varying rates, some not coming fully "online" until shortly before birth, or even well into infancy. When are the fetal senses "wired-up" and ready to go?

  • Taste - Mature taste buds can be seen at around 13 weeks after conception.
  • Smell - In a study of premature infants, some responded to the odor of mint as early as week 29 of pregnancy, and all responded by 36 weeks.
  • Hearing - The cochlea, an important part of the human auditory system, may be functional by week 18. Other structures of the ear continue to develop into the fifth month of pregnancy.
  • Sight - Around week 20, the fetus's heart rate will increase slightly in response to switching on a bright light bulb in front of the womb.
  • Touch - Some parts of the fetus's body are sensitive to touch by week 7. The whole body responds to touch around week 13 or 14.

A Sensory Buffet

The tranquility of a mother's womb seems a far cry from the noisy, smelly outside world. Yet, for the fetus, any sensory data is a rich source of information that can be processed and learned.

Immersed in amniotic fluid (AF) for nine months, the fetus is constantly smelling and tasting through the inhalation and swallowing of AF. Evidence shows that fetuses are able to detect fragrant molecules within the AF; and, indeed, remember these smells. Newborn infants show a preference to their own AF over an unknown AF. They also prefer flavors and odors of foods that their mothers had consumed during pregnancy.

Sound, too, is an important part of the fetal sensory environment. The loudest sounds in the womb come from the mother: her voice, her heartbeat and the sounds of her bodily functions, such as digestion. Sounds originating outside the mother can also reach the fetus, although they may be somewhat distorted.

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