Baby Learns More When Mother is Happy

A new study done by Dr Vicky Leong in the University of Cambridge's Department of Psychology has shown that when mothers express more positive emotions their brain becomes much more connected with their baby's brain. Mother's and baby's brain can work together as a 'mega-network' by synchronising brain wages when they interact. Dual electroencephalography (EEG) was used to look at brain signals in both mother and child while interacting with each other.  They found that mums and babies tend to synchronise their brain waves- an effect known as interpersonal neural connectivity-particularly in the frequency of 6-9 hertz, the infant alpha range. The study found that positive interaction, with lots of eye contact, enhances the ability of mother and infant brains to operate as a single system. This promotes efficient sharing and flow of information between mother and infant.