Scientists at the Institut Marques in Barcelona, Spain, have discovered that preborn babies can already hear and respond to music much sooner than previously believed, according to a Daily Mail report.
"For the first time ever," it can be scientifically proven that a preborn baby detects and responds to sound at 16 weeks gestation, the Institut Marques said in announcing the result of its recent study.
Doctors already know that a foetus' ear becomes fully developed at week 16 of pregnancy.
However, before the latest findings from the Spanish study, experts believed that a foetus could only start hearing at week 18 at the earliest but more commonly nearer 26 weeks.
Dr. Marisa Lopez-Teijon, who led the study, said they found out that whenever they transmit music intravaginally, preborn babies appear to be "trying to speak or sing" as they respond to music by moving their mouth and tongue.
The finding is considered significant not only for the discovery that foetuses can already hear as early as 16 weeks.
Researchers said with the finding, doctors could already check whether a preborn baby has hearing problem.
Since it is already known that music stimulates the part of the brain involved in communication, mothers can start stimulating their unborn babies' communication skills as early at week 16 using a device called Babypod, which was developed by the Spanish researchers as part of their study.
"In essence, it suggests babies can begin to learn before they are born," the Daily Mail said.
The study was carried out on pregnant women between the 14th and 39th week of pregnancy, using ultrasound to observe the reaction of the foetus after hearing music, the Institut Marques said.
The music was emitted both abdominally—against the mother's belly—and intravaginally, via a special speaker called Babypod.
All throughout the experiment the music played was that of Johann Sebastian Bach's Partita in A Minor, the study said.
Before the music was played, ultrasound scans showed that around 45 percent of foetuses made spontaneous head and limb movements, while 30 percent moved their mouth or tongue, and 10 percent stuck their tongues out, the study said.
But when music was emitted via the Babypod, 87 percent of foetuses reacted with head and limb movements. Moreover, they moved their mouth and tongue, which stopped when the music stopped.
The researchers also found out that 50 percent of the foetuses opened their jaw very wide and sticked out their tongue out as far as it would go when they started hearing the music.
The study was published in the journal Ultrasound.