Good news for clingy moms! Studies show you CANNOT hold your baby too much
Good news for clingy moms! Studies show that you CANNOT hold your baby too much
Clingy moms rejoice because science proves you can’t hold your baby too much.
New parents have long been advised to put their newborns down so as not to spoil them, but contrary to popular myth, cuddling activates oxytocin, increases bonding and stimulates their brains to further develop.
Holding your little one close to you not only keeps them warm, but it also curbs crying, regulates breathing and heart rate, helps with weight gain, and improves growth.
These findings are compared to children who have been deprived of physical attention and are at greater risk for behavioral, emotional and social problems as they age.
Studies put a myth to bed — holding your baby too much doesn’t make them spoiled. In any case, cuddling stimulates their development
When you welcome your little one into the world, nurses run to your bedside and advise you to start direct skin-to-skin contact.
This theory is based on the idea that it provides deep comfort to the newborn who was abruptly placed in an uncomfortable environment.
But once you and your baby get home, other parents suggest putting them to sleep for their benefit.
And while the reason is not to spoil them, studies have shown that a baby’s brain is not quite finished and only an adult brain understands the concept.
Years of studies have proven the importance of touch between a caregiver and a baby, Parents reports.
a piece of paper, published in 2020applauds the act of skin-to-skin contact, in which a baby is dressed only in a diaper and placed on the mother’s bare chest.
This result results in the release of oxytocin, which is associated with trust and relationship building, and the activation of sensory nerve fibers.
These studies show that it also improves bonding between caregivers and babies
The study highlights several others, with one noting how the contact is also beneficial to the caregiver.
“Their findings point to the nurturing and predictive quality of parental touch as a primary means of early contact and communication,” the paper reads.
A team of researchers from Ohio’s Nationwide Children’s Hospital observed 125 preterm and full-term babies to see how they responded to touch, such as cuddling with a parent or not-so-light touches during medical procedures.
The results showed that newborns who were touched gently showed more brain responses than when they were touched again during procedures.
This, according to Parents Magazine, suggests that “good” touching helps with brain development.
Nathalie Maitre, who was involved in the study, said in a rackWe certainly hoped that more positive touch experiences in the hospital would help babies have a more typical perception of touch when they went home.
“But we were very surprised to find that if babies go through more painful procedures at a young age, their sense of gentle touch can be compromised.”
“For new parents, including those whose young children have to undergo complex medical procedures, take heart: your touch is more important than you know.”