Noise And The Unborn

Press, Volume CIX, Issue 31981, 7 May 1969, Page 2

Noise And The Unborn

(N.Z. Press Association?

AUCKLAND, May 6. To finance an investigation into the believed noise factor in unborn babies, the Auckland Medical Research Foundation today announced a grant of $5500. The grant will go to Professor A. W. Liley, of the Auckland Post - graduate School of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, who will carry out the-project over two years in the National Women’s Hospital. A radiophysicist will be engaged to measure sound and light intensities inside the mother.

Work already done in the hospital suggests that noises from outside, the mother’s voice and her heart beats, may build up to quite a lot of sound reaching the unborn baby. The project will aim to measure the sound and light reaching the baby. It Is also hoped that the

research will show the rate of learning in the developing infant, and whether any impairment of hearing is evident at this stage in the hope that it may be possible to treat this before birth. Time Of Birth Doctors think that this work may lead to discoveries whether the effect of light reaching the unborn infant explaina the time at which babies tend -to be.bowearlier work at the National Women’s Hospital seems to show that the baby and not

the mother is responsible for deciding when birth takes place.

The foundation has also provided $1671 for research into the best food for babies of low birth weight. At one itme it was the practice to starve such infants for the first 24 to 72 hours, but this was found to affect physical and chemical developments in the body. . Mpty recently early feeding hit been-advocated but this, in turn, , has given rise to pompUcaUons. . The problem will be investigated by appointing a researcher, with a master of home science degree, to work with Dr R. N. Howie in the National Women's Hospital. The foundation has also announced a grant of $2BOO for heart disease research in Green Lane Hospital, under Dr J. N; Neutz.