What is your baby trying to tell you when he or she cries?

How do you know whether they're hungry or tired? Babies don't come with an instruction manual. Or do they?

Dunstan Baby Language is a language that Priscilla Dunstan, from Australia, has used to decipher the different sounds that infants make during the first three months of their life.

Sarah Alexander teaches Dunstan Baby Language in the Lower Mainland and says there are five distinctive sounds that babies make to tell parents what they need

"The neah or the mah sound is based on the sucking reflex, so the tongue hits the roof of the mouth,'' said Alexander.

That means your baby is hungry.

"And when babies are tired, their mouth will make an oval shape and they will make the ow sound,'' said Alexander

"If they have upper abdominal gas, that is when you can try burping them,'' she said.

Dunstan Baby Language also identifies the sounds that indicate a baby is suffering from lower abdominal pain.

"And when babies are uncomfortable, they'll make an heh sound,'' said Alexander

"So it is basically understanding what the baby is saying prior to that hysterical crying point and then hopefully they will not get there,'' she said.

Liz Weir has been using Dunstan Baby Language with her new born, Mason.

"It has been very calming because being able to understand what he needs gives myself and my husband a little bit more confidence,'' she said.

And the techniques appear to be working

"To be able to communicate with an infant at this age was unheard of for so long. See, he needs to burp,'' she said.

Communicating with your baby Questionis and Answers.

Q. This program sounds like the magic key and almost too good to be true. Is it?

A. Critics from the linguistics and early language development fields will say there's little rigorous scientific evidence to prove whether this method really works.

But I think for motivated parents, its a great idea to try. It'll help hone your listening skills to try to correlate your baby's sounds to what's going on with them before the crying gets out of hand.

And at the end of the day, it can help strengthen the bond between parent and child, and may help everyone get more sleep.

Q. Where can people get more information about the Dunstan Baby Language program?

A. There are DVDs that you can buy that teach you how to recognize the various baby sounds. You can also click on the Dunstan Baby Language website.

With a report by CTV British Columbia's Dr. Rhonda Low.