Therapeutic Massage—for Infants, Too!
Actions truly do speak louder than words, and for infants, touch is the most profound communication they can receive. Infant massage is a wonderful way for parents to tell babies they are loved and cared for that also has profound physical and mental benefits for both parent and child.
Among the documented benefits of infant massage to babies are improved sleep, improved immune function, better weight gain in premature infants, improved brain, nerve, and motor development, reduction in colic, decreased fussiness, and increased time spent in “quiet alert” states.
The benefits for parents are just as profound. Parents who regularly massaged their babies had reductions in blood pressure and reported feeling calmer and less stressed. Fathers and mothers who massaged their babies reported feeling a deeper bond with their child. It literally helped them be “in touch” with their baby’s needs and emotions.
Research specific to the benefits of infant massage has been ongoing since the mid 1970s.This research has been conducted at various institutes and with infants who were premature, exposed to drugs in utero, and infants that had motor problems. All these categories of babies benefited from the nurturing touch of infant massage. These benefits included weight gain, neurological development, decreased hospitalization, and improved digestion.
Infant massage is not difficult to learn. Most infant massage classes last about an hour or so, and may include techniques that can help parents soothe such infant discomforts as colic, gas, constipation, and minor nasal congestion in addition to teaching basic infant massage strokes. Because there are circumstances where massage should not be used, parents or caregivers interested in learning infant massage should look for classes taught by a certified infant massage instructor.
