Innovative fertility lab hits the right note

FREDDIE is the first British baby to be born thanks to music-assisted fertility treatment.

His parents turned to the innovative method after trying for a child for four years. Freddie was conceived using a method in which music is played to a dish containing the eggs and sperm.

Studies suggest vibrations produced by the music boost the chances of fertilisation.

Freddie’s parents, Isabelle and Stephen, sought the help of the Institut Marques fertility clinic in Barcelona after two miscarriages and a failed try at conventional IVF. And Freddie, now one, seems to have been born with a love of music.

His mother, from Liverpool, said: “From early on we noticed he was hugely drawn to music. He always loved being sung to, and seemed more relaxed when music was being played. We hope when we tell Freddie about the musical element of his beginnings it will help him feel extra-special.”

The Institut Marques began offering the treatment after studying whether playing music in IVF labs affected fertilisation rates.

They injected sperm into almost 1 000 eggs and put them in dishes in incubators. They placed speakers in half the incubators and played music round the clock. The playlist included songs by Michael Jackson and Madonna, heavier tracks from Nirvana and Metallica, and classical works by Bach, Mozart and Vivaldi.

As expected, not all the eggs were fertilised. But, to the researchers’ surprise, fertili- sation rates were almost 5 percent higher in the incubators in which music was played – with pop, heavy metal and classical appearing to work equally well.

Embryos do not develop the ability to detect sound until at least 14 weeks, so it is thought the vibrations from the music are key. They are believed to help wash nutrients into the egg and speed the removal of toxic waste.

This copies the way , in natural conception, the fertilised egg is rocked in the fallopian tube, then subjected to gentle contractions in the womb.

Couples in 17 countries have become parents thanks to it. – Daily Mail