Millennial Parents Are Ditching *This* Bedtime Ritual (and, According to Science, It’s Important to Bring It Back)
Rock-a-Bye Baby, Tura Lura Lura, Frère Jacques—all were as signature to your childhood bedtime routine as bath, books and lights out.
Not anymore, according to a new YouGov poll commissioned by the Lullaby Trust (and reported on by The Telegraph) in the UK.
Nowadays, just over a third of new parents with kids under the age of five sing lullabies at bedtime, per the study. Not only that, the majority of parents who do are age 45 or older, which means that millennial parents are phasing out the musically-inspired bedtime tradition almost altogether.
But here’s the rub: Numerous studies—including this one out of the University of Montreal—report that singing keeps babies calm twice as long as talking to them. Lullabies are also scientifically proven to be an essential precursor to later educational success and emotional well-being, according to Sally Goddard-Blythe, director of the UK’s Institute for Neuro-Physiological Psychology.
So, whether you sound like Céline Dion or Countess Luann, it may be worth delaying bedtime another three to five minutes so you can make time for a lullaby. And if your kid nods off even a hair faster than typical? Well, that’s just a credit to you.