At Infant Massage USA, we often discuss the importance of nurturing touch. Here, we’d like to explain what nurturing touch is and how it can impact development.
Nurturing touch can be defined as hugging, a reassuring hand placed on areas like the back, arm, or shoulder, or any nurturing holding. In infant massage, nurturing touch can be seen through massage strokes, resting hands, and cuddling.
Individuals will all have different relationships with and tolerance for touch, which can be impacted by culture, education, experiences, disability, and other factors. In an infant massage class taught by a Certified Infant Massage educator, parents and caregivers learn how to observe, ask permission, and recognize cues to guide their children toward appropriate and safe touch.
Impact on development: Touch is an important part of healthy development. It is an integral part of human behavior from birth until death (1), and children in the US are the least touched in the world (2). Studies (3, 4) show the importance of touch in childhood through research conclusions such as:
- A 1996 experiment by Martha Nogueras showed that “infants that received touch showed better social behavior when placed in front of experimenters. They showed more focus and attentiveness when conversing with the experimenters .”
- A 1998 study by Fields and Scaldi concluded that “the stimulated infants were also released [from the hospital] an average of six days before the non-stimulated infants. The researchers also found that the infants that received stimulation spent more time awake and active, were behaviorally more mature, and were more oriented.“
- A 2002 study with adolescents by Fields “supports the notion that less physical affection (or more physical neglect) can contribute to greater aggression. Massage therapy has been effective with violent adolescents, perhaps because the physical stimulation reduced their dopamine levels and increased their serotonin levels. Their aggressive behavior decreased, and their empathetic behavior increased. “
How can you provide nurturing touch? Options include:
- Skin-to-skin contact (kangaroo care)
- Holding your children on your lap during a bedtime story
- Frequent hugs or snuggling
- Holding your baby during feeding
- Holding hands with your toddler
- A back massage for older kids
Note: We recommend parents of newborns attend a class with a Certified Educator (or CEIM). You can find a CEIM near you in our Directory here. Online classes may also be available. CEIMs demonstrate with a doll during these classes.
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