Premature babies are exposed to numerous stresses in intensive care nurseries, including loud noises, bright lights, blood drawing, and invasive procedures. Stress can have negative effect on these babies’ immune systems. Massage therapy can be beneficial because it lowers stress and improves their immune system.
Prior to birth, babies are exposed to physical stimulation in their mother’s wombs. Massage is a form of stimulation that promotes growth and development in premature babies.
Also, premature and low birth weight babies are often placed in incubators, open beds, attached to numerous monitors that interfere with them being touch as often as full term babies.
The University of Miami’s Touch Research Institute has reported for over twenty years the benefits associated with infant massages. It increases the baby’s resistance to infection by stimulating the immune system. Also, massaged babies experience an accelerated weight gain.
It also stimulates an increase in oxytocin levels, a hormone that has pain relieving properties, and a calming effect.
A review of medical research studies found 14 randomized massage studies involving premature and/or low birth weight babies.
The review included studies in which a control group of babies that did not receive massage. The were compared to the babies who did. The babies, in most of the studies were massaged for about 15 minutes, three or four times a day, for five or ten days. The studies determined that that babies receiving massage experienced more weight gain (about 5 grams), were discharged from the hospital faster, had slightly better developmental test scores and experienced fewer complications. Massage did not have any negative effects. While it is a time consuming process for nurses to provide, parents can perform it without extensive training.
Benefits for Babies:
* Improves weight gain
*Helps the baby to become more organized
* Allows the baby to be more alert, so he can interact with you and others
* Helps start oral feeding earlier (rather than tube feeding)
* Promotes healthier bones
*Supports infant-parent interaction
*Promotes weight gain in preterm infants
*Lowers cortisol levels, a significant stress hormone
* Increases muscle tone
*Improves sleep
* Shortens lengths of stay in hospitals
*Improves cognitive and motor development at eight months of age
* Infant massage is an inexpensive tool
*Can be incorporated as a part of the premature infant’s developmental care plan.
Benefits for Parents and Caregivers
* Provides the essential elements of intimate parent-infant bonding and attachment: eye to eye, touch smell movement, and temperature regulation
* Encourages pre-verbal communication between infant and caregiver
* Helps to increase parent’s confidence and competence in caring their children.
* Helps parents to reduce their stress, if they are working and must be separated for their child for extended periods during the day
* Provides parents with one-on-one quiet time or interactive play with their children
* Creates a regular time of infancy between child and parent
*Elevates parents’ self-esteem by enhancing and reingforcing their skills as parents and validates their role
* Provides parents with the tools for understanding their child’s unique behavior and patterns
* Teaches parents how to read their infants’ cues and recognize their states of awareness
Gives parents a precious way to interact with their children who may be hospitalized. It helps parents to feel a greater part of the healing process
* Daily massage helps parents to unwind and relax
* Provides a positive way for fathers to interact with their infant children
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