study reveals they can also ease pain, Ivan Hewett explores
why music has such a powerful effect on infants
Hold the front page! It turns out that lullabies ease pain and
anxiety in children. This story was reported yesterday – and as
often happens, you wonder why anyone would think it was
news. Isn't that why lullabies emerged in the first place, to stop
children being afraid of the dark, still their fidgety bodies and
minds, and lull them off to sleep?
Still, let's be fair. This story, as featured on Radio 4's Today
programme, was the outcome of a proper research project
carried out at Great Ormond Street Hospital, which set out to
answer the question of whether it really is listening to live music
that has this soothing effect, or the presence of an attentive
adult. Thirty-seven patients under the age of three were
"recruited", all with heart or respiratory problems. Each took
part in three 10-minute sessions: one in which they were read to,
one in which they were sung lullabies, and one in which they were
left alone. What the researchers discovered was "a significant
decrease in heart rate and pain level" at the end of the session
involving music.
