If you've ever watched a parent gaze at a new baby, what may have been striking to you is the meaningful exchange that seems to occur. This special time is a simple yet profound element of parent-child bonding. All parents can take this meaningful experience a step further with baby massage. Despite the fancy sounding label, you don't need to be a trained massage professional to connect with your child using this age-old parenting tool. The massage session is an interaction using gentle touch, massage, and reflexology. This exchange nourishes baby both physically and emotionally. Classes for expecting or new parents in Infant Massage are available around the United States, and internationally. In the class, you’ll learn a simple set of strokes you can use at home. You are also likely to meet other new parents and enjoy a special time with your child. There are many physical and emotional benefits of massage. What you’ll find below is just a brief introduction to the power of touch.

Benefits for Baby

Relaxation and Organization

A baby’s nervous system is immature at birth. Infants live in a world full of sound, color, light and sensations without the tools to completely process them. We sometimes describe the panicky, fussy state a newborn reaches as “disorganization”- not unlike the way adults feel when they can’t quite get everything together. How does massage, or nurturing touch, fit into this picture? Stimulation of the skin promotes nervous system development. Thus, babies who are massaged become better “organized”. Touch also helps babies learn to relax. This relaxation in turn reduces fussiness. Deeper relaxation often allows sleep to come more easily and more deeply.

Development of a Healthy Digestive System

Massage strokes can improve baby’s digestion. Always stroke a baby’s tummy with gentle but firm pressure, in a clock-wise direction. The direction of your strokes is important in this area, because you must move in the direction that food moves through the digestive system. A tummy massage will help relieve baby’s gas and constipation. Massage in the abdominal area also strengthens the digestive system. The research is inconclusive on the reasons for this improvement. One study attributes the massaged baby’s better digestion to an increase in the baby’s production of insulin, a food absorption hormone. Given this, it’s not surprising to learn that babies who are massaged also gain weight more readily.

Colic Relief

Colic refers to uncontrolled episodes of crying in an otherwise healthy baby. This can be torturous for both baby and parents. Since there is no medically agreed upon cause for colic, finding relief can be an especially hard process of trial and error. The use of regular massage is one tool to help relieve the distress babies and parents experience due to colic. An instructor of infant massage can demonstrate a specialized massage routine that serves as a “prescription” for colic.

Babies with Special Needs

The positive effects of massage with pre-term infants have been well documented by research. Nurses in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICUs) are frequently trained in infant massage. The nurses teach parents to use the massage to bond with and support their tiny new ones. In one study, preterm infants who were massaged gained 47% more weight than those who weren’t massaged. These babies also became more socially responsive and were discharged six days earlier than babies who weren’t massaged. Massage has powerful benefits for other babies with special needs. It increases general relaxation and stimulates muscle tone. This is particularly helpful for babies with cerebral palsy or other hypertonic states. It helps to regulate hypersensitivity, often seen in drug-exposed babies. Babies with vision, hearing or other neurological impairments may not be able to receive typical stimulation such as smiling or singing. Nurturing touch becomes an especially important bonding and soothing tool for families, as a way to replace the other senses.

Baby’s Emotional Wellbeing

The physical benefits are a persuasive argument for the importance of touch. But, there is more to a massage session than meets the eye. The exchange of loving glances, and mirroring of facial expressions is critical in the formation of a secure attachment between child and parent. Recent work in the field of psychiatry has established direct links between secure attachment, development of efficient right brain regulatory functions, and adaptive infant mental health. Secure attachment is a direct result of being loved, nurtured, comforted and cared for. Nurturing touch, and the closeness that occurs during a session of massage, facilitates this connection. Cross-cultural studies have also shown that cultures where parents use nurturing touch there is a lower incidence of violent crime and domestic violence.

Benefits for Parents

Confidence and Emotional Wellbeing

You, as a parent, are nurtured by this touch as well. The skin to skin contact helps you to relax. Your own cortisol, or stress hormone levels, will drop. You will feel like a better parent, because you will learn what your baby enjoys and how to make him more comfortable. Massage has a special benefit for mothers who are dealing with the baby blues or its more intense version, post-partum depression (PPD). A mother struggling with PPD may have difficulty creating a positive relationship with her infant. Being involved in an infant massage class has been found as one of few effective, drug free approaches for improving this dynamic. In one study, a group of mothers with post-partum depression who attended 5 massage classes was compared with a similar group who attended a support group. At the end of the test period, the massage group had significantly less depression and very significantly better interaction with their babies than the control group.

Fathers and Massage

Many new fathers find that massage is a perfect support for their new relationship with baby. The Touch Research Institute (at the University of Miami) conducted a study where fathers gave their infants daily massages 15 minutes prior to bedtime for one month. The fathers in the massage group showed more optimal interaction behavior with their infants than fathers who were in a control group. One father who massaged both children throughout their childhood shares his experience: “For me, it was great to have physical contact. As our kids grew, it was also great to have closeness besides roughhousing. Now that they’re teens, massage helps them relax. It’s taught them that they can take of themselves.” As a parent who has used massage with my children as babies, toddlers and schoolchildren, I highly recommend the experience for everyone.

What you need for massage with your baby

• An alert, receptive baby. An instructor will help you recognize cues that your baby is ready for interaction.
• A warm space, where you can massage baby without putting pressure on your back or shoulders (the floor or a bed can work well).
• Dimmed light, and soft music, or none at all.
• Organic oil, to lightly coat your hands--Research has shown that infants have lower cortisol levels (stress hormones) following massage with oil versus massage without oil. If you're interested in finding a class in your area, check with local hospitals, birthing centers, doulas or prenatal massage specialists.

External Links:

• Touch Research Institute, University of Miami - Research Data on Benefits of Massage with Infants
• Effects of Secure Attachment Relationships - More Information on Baby's Secure Attachment and Mental Health