Children in such buggies are significantly less likely to talk, laugh, and interact with their parents, than are those in buggies that face the pusher, according to new research on the psychological effects of buggies on babies.

The findings were recently published by ‘Talk To Your Baby', the early language campaign of the National Literacy Trust, an independent charity that aims to change lives through literacy.

The study involved 2,722 parent-baby pairs across the country and was led by Dr Suzanne Zeedyk, Developmental Psychologist at Dundee University 's School of Psychology .

Key findings included:

• 62% were travelling in away-facing buggies, with the rate even higher, at 86%, between the ages of 1 and 2 years.
• Parents using face-to-face buggies were more then twice as likely to be talking to their baby.
• Fewer than a quarter of parents observed were speaking to their child.
• Mothers and infants laughed more frequently with face-to-face buggies. Only one baby in the group of 20 studied laughed during the away-facing journey, while half laughed during the face-to-face journey.
• Babies' average heart rates fell slightly when placed in a toward-facing buggy, and babies were twice as likely to fall asleep this way, which are possible indicators of reduced stress levels.

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