Imagine if just one touch can soothe your baby right away, what else can a loving, intentional touch do? It’s been validated again and again in many clinical studies that massaging your baby, or providing a loving touch, is beneficial for both you and your child.
Experts believe that a baby, while warm and cozy in a mother’s womb, receives constant massage with every movement. Therefore, out of the womb, a child responds beautifully to the loving, therapeutic, and rhythmic touch of a soothing and comforting massage.
You can experience so much joy and fulfillment during a baby massage, while your infant feels nurtured, secured, and cared for. A regular massage regimen promotes and strengthens a secure attachment between mother and child.
In this article, you will learn:
- Baby massage benefits
- Kinds of baby massage
- When to stop baby massage
Baby massage benefits
According to a number of studies, massaging your baby has been shown to provide a variety of health benefits.
- Improves digestion, as it helps babies clear bowels and releases abdominal gas
- Encourages good blood circulation
- Helps build bone density and firm up soft muscles
- Lulls babies to restful sleep, and is especially helpful to colicky babies
- Helps clear the lymphatic system of toxins
- Helps you check your child for cleanliness in hidden areas, such as the navel region, below the chin, between fingers and toes, nails, etc.
Further studies on baby massage benefits
Researchers claim that massaging infants can provide health benefits that endure well into adulthood.
In an article by BBC, Gary Darmstadt, professor of neonatal and developmental medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine, said that
“The skin is the largest organ of the body, but we often minimize how important skincare is to overall health.”
Darmstadt and his colleagues demonstrated that this traditional practice can save lives through a study of 497 premature newborns who got daily massages at a hospital in Bangladesh in 2008.
The team discovered that regular massages assist create the baby’s microbiome — the layer of bacteria that lives on the skin and in the gut – through different studies. By functioning as an effective barrier that keeps infections out, the microbiome plays a key role in improving immunity.
Darmstadt says that there was “about a 40% reduction in the risk of infection and a 25-50% reduction in the risk of mortality” among the premature newborn respondents. This is essentially significant.
Benefits for mom
- Massaging your baby regularly is known to produce the well-being hormone known as oxytocin, as well as reduce the production of cortisol in new mothers. This in turn reduces the chances of developing postnatal blues or depression.
- While massaging babies, mothers become more attentive to nonverbal cues and facial expressions. This helps the mother read her child more accurately.
How to do baby massage
A baby massage should be oil-based because it helps to reduce friction on skin-to-skin touch and rubbing. A massage is nice to do after a warm bath with a lovely fluffy towel for the baby to lie on.
Oil massages, when done correctly, have been demonstrated to help babies gain weight, avoid bacterial infections, and reduce infant mortality by up to 50%.
Natural oils, which do not have too much heat or chemicals, are recommended for massaging. These include coconut oil, almond oil, sesame oil, olive oil, or even ghee (clarified butter). Mass-produced baby oils are mineral-based and have little nutritional value.
It is important to remember that what is applied to the skin is absorbed by the body and has the capacity to nourish and strengthen the skin, bones, and muscles of a growing infant.
A baby massage starts at the feet by gently lifting the legs up and down. You can also make them cycle in the air, and remember to massage around the navel area and downward from the chest.
Make it a point to pull and press along the ears. Then take both arms, crisscross them and wrap them around the child as if hugging them. Babies just love this! This self-hug pose also helps to calm colic babies. Fold the baby’s knees at the waist for the “wind release posture”. This is effective in relieving gas in the colon.
For older infants (five months and up), raise the legs and bend them back toward the head. This enhances digestion and spinal flexibility. With babies lying face down on their belly, stroke the back of the head all the way down the spine in a slow, firm zigzag motion.
Watch out for baby’s wee, especially the boys! Do not massage a baby if he or she has a fever, mucus congestion, or is in any state of pain or discomfort.
READ MORE:
Baby tummy massage: Gentle strokes on baby’s tummy can relieve colic and constipation
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When should I massage my baby
If you massage your infant too soon after a meal, he or she may vomit. Wait at least 45 minutes after feeding before doing so. Pay attention to your baby’s mood as well.
If your infant has a calm and content expression, he or she might like a massage. While it might not be the greatest moment for a massage if your infant turns his or her head away from you or grows tight in your arms.
It is entirely up to you when and how often you massage your kid. You could massage your newborn on a daily basis, especially as a relaxing element of his or her sleep routine.
Baby massage for gas
If your baby is having gas issues that are causing them discomfort, it can mean long nights with little sleep, and a lot of crying. To help your infant feel better and relieve gas, you might want to try giving your baby a massage.
First and foremost, any home remedies you intend to attempt should be discussed with your pediatrician. Your doctor might point out safety factors, or suggest options you hadn’t considered!
But if your doctor suggests that massaging your baby is a good idea, then give it a go! Here’s how.
The International Association of Infant Massage considers asking your baby for permission to be a vital first step in baby massage. Start with a very soft touch and maintain eye contact throughout the massage. If your kid appears content and contented as the massage goes, you can always increase the pressure.
Set up a warm, peaceful environment, where you will massage your infant. Place them on their back with a nice, comfy towel, and talk to them about why you’re massaging them. This could also be a great way to bond with your baby.
Baby massage for sleep
You can also promote a night of good sleep for your baby through infant massage.
- Throughout the massage, make sure you keep talking to her and letting her know what to expect. Her relaxation will be triggered by the soothing sound of your voice.
- One thumb should rub upward while the second thumb, which goes in the same way, takes turns. Stroke the sole of the foot gently from heel to toe. Squeeze each toe gently.
Making little circles around the ankle, massage the top of the foot towards the ankle. As you work your way up the leg, do the “rope twist,” wrapping your hands loosely around your baby’s legs. Move your bottom hand toward the right while you move your top hand toward the left, gently and softly massage her skin and muscles to improve leg circulation.
- Gently massage from the belly button to the outside with both thumbs. From the stomach to the chest, “walk” your fingers. Make sweeping, smooth motions outward.
- Make a “sun-and-moon” motion by tracing a circle — the “sun” — from the top of your baby’s chest to her belly button with both of your index fingers.
Now, using your right hand, trace a “moon” (a backward “c”) up to the top of her chest; then, with your left hand (a forward “c”), do the same. Repeat this process a few times. Then make a heart-shaped movement on her chest by softly tracing a heart from the center of her breastbone to her belly button with all of your fingertips.
- Use the “rope twist” method, then massage both arms with open hands. Roll each finger delicately. On the top of each wrist, make little circles.
- When doing an infant massage, be extra careful around your baby’s delicate face. Massage her forehead and brows, and then softly massage around the eye area with your thumbs. Go along your baby’s nasal bridge, back and forth over her cheek, from her ears to her upper and lower lips, and back. Small circles should be made around the mouth and behind the ears. Rub her earlobes and the area beneath her chin.
- Prepare to make circles on the back of your baby’s head and shoulders once you’ve gently rolled him or her over. Stroke her up and down in a back-and-forth manner. Allow your hands to travel the full length of her body, from the top of her back to her ankles, making little circles around the back muscles.
I love you massage baby
Here’s an additional massage technique you can give to your baby while telling them you love them.
- Begin with a hand that is at rest.
- On the left side of your baby’s tummy (your right), make a single downward stroke with your right hand. From your baby’s right to left side, make a backward, sideways ‘L’.
- Make an upside-down ‘U’ with your baby’s lower right side, up, across, and down the left side of his or her abdomen.
- As you go through the strokes, say the words “I love you.”
Baby scrub
After an oil massage, it is a good idea to administer a baby scrub. Baby scrubs are done on feet, legs, hands, arms, belly, and back. Face and head areas should be avoided. A baby scrub helps the infant get rid of dead skin and nourish it to maintain its pH balance.
To make a homemade scrub you can add two to three tablespoons of gram flour and fresh yogurt or milk, and half a teaspoon of turmeric. Mix the paste and then gently rub the paste on the baby, starting with the legs, moving upwards. Make sure the baby is on a plastic mat, as the scrub leaves a yellow stain. Keep rubbing until the paste dries and begins to flake off. The baby is then ready for a quick wash and a good night’s sleep.
When to stop baby massage
Before you try infant massage, see your baby’s doctor if he or she has any underlying health difficulties. The doctor can advise you on whether massage is right for you. You may also ask your baby’s doctor for a referral to an infant massage specialist or another certified professional who can show you how to address your baby’s individual needs.
If your baby cries or becomes fussy, don’t keep massaging them. If this occurs, wait a few weeks before trying again for a shorter period of time.
Republished with permission from theAsianParent Singapore
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