Share

Foetuses have short term memory

Foetuses that are only 30 weeks old may already possess short-term memory, Dutch researchers report.

"This is the next step into a better insight in the development of the foetal central nervous system," said study co-author Dr Jan G. Nijhuis, director of the Centre for Genetics, Reproduction and Child Health at Maastricht University Medical Centre in the Netherlands. "We aim to develop an 'intra-uterine neurologic examination,' which could then be used in foetuses at risk."

Although memory is thought to develop while the baby is still in the womb, little else is known about the phenomenon.

"It is a fairly new idea to look at: whether learning occurs in utero," said Dr Russell Fothergill, an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynaecology at Texas A&M Health Science Centre College of Medicine and director of ambulatory care at Scott & White.

How the study was done
The authors recruited 93 pregnant Dutch women, and then measured foetal responses to repeated "vibroacoustic" stimulation. Their report appears in the issue of Child Development.

"We used a vibroacoustic stimulator, which leads to a combined stimulus of vibration and sound," Nijhuis explained. "The stimuli were applied to the maternal abdomen above the foetal legs for a period of one second every 30 seconds. We counted the number of stimuli after which the foetus does not respond anymore."

When the foetus makes the change to no longer responding, it is "habituated"; it recognises the stimulus as "safe."

The authors stated that habituation is a form of learning and needs an intact central nervous system. "In its simplest form, [habituation] is related to how we think about humans learning," Fothergill said.

According to background information in the paper, the first study to look at foetal habituation took place in 1925 and involved repeated honking of a car hooter. Since then, similar studies have been conducted with electric toothbrushes and door buzzers, as well as the vibroacoustic stimulator.

30-week-old foetuses had 10-minute memory
In this study, foetuses were exposed to the vibroacoustic stimulation at 30, 32, 34, 36 and 38 weeks' gestation. Foetuses as young as 30 weeks demonstrated a short-term memory of 10 minutes, and foetuses at 34 weeks seemed able to remember information they stored four weeks prior, the authors stated.

The level of stimulation the foetuses in this study received appears relatively high, another expert stated.

"I'm almost certain the baby heard it quite clearly and it was probably pretty loud," said Dr Richard O. Jones, an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynaecology at Texas A&M Health Science Centre College of Medicine and medical director of obstetrics at Scott & White.

"I almost wish I could do an ultrasound looking at the baby while they were making these loud noises. I would not be at all surprised to see the baby putting its hands over its ears."

And, of course, doctors routinely used different forms of stimulation to make sure a baby is alive and, literally, "kicking" while still in the womb.

"One of the things we do to monitor the health of a pregnancy is to have the mother count the baby's kicks. We like to see 10 movements in a two-hour period and most moms get 10 movements in about 20 minutes, especially if they time it after dinner," Jones said.

After reading this study, he added, if a mother complains that her baby isn't moving enough, one of the things he might suggest is turning the volume down. – (HealthDay News, July 2009)

Read more:
Air pollution bad for foetus

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE