Scientists have found evidence that classical music can calm the heart rate of unborn babies, potentially providing developmental benefits.

The American Institute of Physics published research from a multi-disciplinary team in Mexico studying the effect of classical music on a fetal heartbeat. They used mathematical analysis tools to identify patterns in heart rate variability.

Typical measures of heart rate are an average of several beats across multiple seconds, whereas ‘heart rate variability’ measures the time between the beats.

The research team explained that the measure can provide insight into the maturation of the fetal autonomic nervous system, with greater variability often indicating healthier development.

To test the effects music can have on fetal heart rate, the team recruited 36 pregnant women in Mexico and played a pair of classical pieces for their unborn babies — The Swan by French composer Camille Saint-Saëns and Arpa de Oro by Mexican composer Abundio Martínez.

By attaching external heart rate monitors, the research team could measure the fetal heart rate response to both songs. And, by employing nonlinear recurrence quantification analysis, they could identify changes in heart rate variability during and after the music was played.

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“Overall, we discovered that exposure to music resulted in more stable and predictable fetal heart rate patterns,” said Dr. Claudia Lerma, of the National Institute of Cardiology in Mexico, who co-authored the published study.

“This momentary effect could stimulate the development of the fetal autonomic nervous system.”

For expectant parents at home, the researchers suggest that classical music could help promote fetal development.

“Our results suggest that these changes in fetal heart rate dynamics occur instantly in short-term fluctuations, so parents might want to consider exposing their fetuses to quiet music,” explained study author Professor Eric Abarca-Castro.

“Parents who play soothing music may stimulate and benefit the fetal autonomic system.”

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The authors plan to continue to explore this effect, looking at different genres and types of music to further their understanding.

“To ascertain whether rhythmic or cultural variations elicit distinct fetal cardiac responses, we intend to increase the size of our sample and expand our investigation to include a variety of musical styles beyond classical pieces,” says co-author Dr. José Reyes-Lagos.

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