For this podcast episode, we review some recent research studies that not only show the importance of frequent skin-to-skin care, but how it correlates with a more synchronous relationship between the infant and parents, promotes parental attachment, involvement, and breast milk production! You will hear many of the ways skin-to-skin care positively affects the infant and the parents.
The practice of kangaroo care between an infant and their parent results in this beautiful, virtuous, positive cycle of unending benefits for everyone involved! With both the physical, mental, and neurobiological benefits, kangaroo care is one of the most effective non-pharmacological nursing interventions used in the NICU for the care of infants and their family.
Skin-to-skin care has been shown to minimize stress in infants and mothers, promote parental engagement, positively influence the infant’s microbiome, stabilize an infant’s physiologic functioning, improve an infant’s neuromaturation, decrease the risk of postpartum depression, and improve maternal-child attachment.
Once parents begin to bond with their infant, they are more likely to remain involved which allows them to learn their infant’s behavioral cues. Once this occurs, parents are able to confidently care for their infant while in the NICU and after discharge which continues to promote a nurturing environment and ultimately improves the infant’s long-term outcomes.
Stay tuned and get ready to be blown away by the amazingness of what our human bodies can do!
Grab your freebies mentioned in the episode at:
https://empoweringnicuparents.com/hats/
https://empoweringnicuparents.com/kangaroograph/
https://empoweringnicuparents.com/kangaroolog/
https://empoweringnicuparents.com/standingtransfer/
Empowering NICU Parents Show Notes: https://empoweringnicuparents.com/episode30/
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