There are so many benefits to do skin to skin with your baby! Did you know, that in Bogata, Columbia in the 1970’s they may have come across what has now become standard practice which is to provide skin to skin care your baby? When a hospital in Columbia was short on incubators for their premature babies, they placed the naked infants on their mothers bodies and the covered the baby with a blanket. They discovered that the heat from the mothers body kept her baby at the perfect temperature! Often called Kangaroo care or skin to skin has become standard practice for babies and mothers. A baby will often find their mothers’ breast all on their own if left skin to skin after birth. Here are just a few benefits of cuddling up with your naked baby onto your naked chest!
- helps stimulate digestion which gets your baby interested in latching at the breast
- helps to calm and soothe both Mother and baby
- helps to regulate their heart rate
- Regulates their body temperature. (Babies have a hard time in the beginning with body temperature regulation)
- Simulates the release of hormones that supports breastfeeding
Dad’s and partners, you too, can do skin to skin with your baby! This practice can be continued for the first couple of months! Just be sure to practice skin to skin safely and be mindful of not falling asleep during skin to skin with your baby.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27550975/