Baby massage
As well as being an excellent way to bond with your baby, massage has many proven benefits for her, helping soothe her if she cries excessively, easing colic and promoting better sleep patterns.
It can help premature or ill babies too – in one study, babies in a neonatal intensive care unit were massaged for 15 minutes, three times a day for 10 days. All the babies were able to go home a week earlier than expected and in a follow-up study a year later, their IQs were found to be higher than the babies who were handled routinely.
Perhaps the biggest plus is that virtually all parents can learn how to massage their babies. Gather everything you’ll need – a towel, diaper, wipes, clean clothes and some olive oil or specially mixed baby aromatherapy oil.
As a guide, don’t press too hard on your baby’s skin (touch your fingertip to your eyelid – that’s as much pressure as you should use on any part of his body) and keep one of your hands in contact with his skin at all times so he’s kept warm by the heat of your hand. Maintain eye contact at all times and sing or talk to your baby throughout he massage. Now follow gurgle’s tips to get you started…
1. Choose a time when your baby is relaxed and quiet – an hour before or after a feed is ideal – and lie him on a soft towel in a warm room with no drafts.
2. Sit or kneel, facing him, and warm your hands by covering them in oil and rubbing them together.
3. Massage your baby’s chest and arms by gently smoothing your hands over his chest area, up over his shoulders and down his arms to the tips of his fingers.
4. Massage his arms by lightly twisting your hand around them in a gentle, circular motion.
5. Gently rub his tummy in clockwise circles rather than anti-clockwise, as the digestive system works in a clockwise direction. This massage can be useful if your baby has colic.
6. Massage his legs by smoothing your hands down them and then repeat the circular motion you used to massage his arms from his thighs down to his ankles.
7. Massage his feet by holding on to one of his legs at the ankle and rubbing up and down his toes with your other hand. If you put your thumb just underneath his toes on the bottom of his foot, he’ll flex his toes around your fingers!
8. If your baby is used to spending some time lying on his front, massage his back by placing your hands on either side of his spine (don’t massage the spine itself) and running them up and down from his shoulders to his toes.
9. When you’ve finished, wrap your baby in the towel so he doesn’t get too cold, and shower him with kisses and cuddles!
The information in this feature is intended for educational purposes only. If you have any concerns about your health, the health of your child or the health of someone you know, please consult with a doctor or other healthcare professional.