For infants and parents, physical contact plays a critical role in communication, emotional regulation, and the formation of important bonds. Because newborns can’t speak, touch becomes a language all its own. That, among other reasons, is why infant massage has become a popular and effective way to start bonding with your baby.
Infant massage also conveys additional advantages, including social, emotional, and physiological benefits. There are many infant massage techniques that parents can choose from, but it’s important to favor those styles that your infant enjoys and responds positively to.
Finding the right techniques can result in a baby that’s less anxious, sleeps better, and even digests food more efficiently.
What Are the Benefits of Infant Massage?
For parents and infants alike, massage can be an experience based around joy. Your baby is happy. And that often means that you, as a parent, are happy! Studies have shown that infant massage also conveys significant benefits for babies, including social, emotional, and physiological benefits.
In this way, massage can promote healthy outcomes for your baby.
Physiological Benefits of Infant Massage
For your baby, massage will promote many important physical benefits. In general, your baby may feel more relaxed–and that leads to a body that functions better and feels healthier. Here are some of the most common physiological benefits of infant massage:
Better digestion: For many infants, massage can lead to improved digestion. This is, in part, because stress can slow down the digestion process. Additionally, lack of sleep can make digestion harder (and vice versa). At the same time, massage can lead to a reduction in issues such as gas and colic.
Better sleep: Your infant will be able to rest and sleep more fully. This can aid your infant’s health in a wide variety of ways, including easier digestion and a stronger immune system.
Improved circulation: Regular massages can help improve your baby’s circulation. There’s some research that suggests that this improved circulation can also be beneficial to your infant’s immune system.
Improved mood: Baby’s who experience regular massages are often reported to be less fussy and less cranky. To some degree, this is likely true because they are receiving positive attention and bonding with their parents. But it’s likely also due to improvements in digestion, circulation, and sleep.
Improved regulation: Infant massage can help your baby regulate many of their internal systems, including circulation, respiration (and oxygen flow), digestion, and more.
Stimulation of brain functions: Regular massages can help stimulate cognitive growth and brain functions, including an improvement to your baby’s overall body awareness.
Physiological benefits may extend beyond what’s listed here or be more limited, as every infant is different and will have a unique reaction. It’s important to emphasize what your baby enjoys and what works for them.
Psychological Benefits of Infant Massage
A massage isn’t just good for your infant’s physiological health–it’s also good for their mental wellbeing. People often don’t imagine that infants have a rich psychology, but the truth is that your baby’s brain–and psychology–is developing rapidly. This means that your baby’s mental health is crucial to their overall wellness.
Some of the most significant psychological benefits of infant massage include the follow:
Your infant stays calmer: Infant massage has been shown to help babies stay calmer for longer. This means that your infant will likely present less anxiety, distress, and crankiness.
Promotes emotional and social development: Studies show that giving your infant regular massages can improve social and emotional development. This can have significant benefits as your baby grows older.
Improves bonds with parents: One of the most significant benefits of infant massage is also one of the simplest: the reinforcement of the bond between the parent and the baby. Infants create bonds based, at least in part, on physical touch. And these bonds can form the bedrock of long-lasting parent-child relationships. The skin-on-skin contact of massage tells your baby that you are a nurturing, trustworthy figure–and that you love your baby!
Relaxation: As with adults, massage in infants can help them relax. This can lead to less stress, less anxiety, and more calm.
It’s important to note that not all babies enjoy massage–and not all parents are able to provide massages on a regular basis. This does not mean that you won’t bond with your infant or that you are somehow a bad parent. Instead, it just means that you will need to find a way to bond with your baby that works for you, for your infant, and for your situation.
Benefits for Parents
Growing up can be stressful–and not just for kids! When you have just become a new parent and you’re raising a newborn, you’ll also be grappling with lack of sleep, fatigue, and the unique pressures of new parenthood (that is, you’ll have a baby who needs you constantly). This can be a uniquely anxious time for parents. And that’s where infant massage has been shown to help.
For example, studies have shown that massage can help lower stress hormones in infants. This can lead to a direct reduction in stress for parents, as well. (It’s hard not to be stressed when your baby is also stressed.) When your baby is calm, you may find that your household in general is more relaxed, too.
That’s not the only benefit for parents who massage their infants. Some of the other benefits for parents include the following:
Increased confidence when holding your baby: Practicing massage on a regular basis can provide you with a boost of confidence when it comes to handling and holding your infant. (Which means you can finally move past that “I don’t know if I’m doing this right” feeling.)
Improved trust between you and your infant: As massage helps your baby relax, you’ll notice that your infant may start to show more trust in you over time. Likewise, you’ll have more trust in yourself! This goes hand in hand with increased confidence when holding your baby–and can help you feel more comfortable parenting in general.
You and your baby get quiet moments together: There’s something nice, for a parent, to be able to just enjoy some time with your baby. Massage can provide you with a little bit of relaxation time together, which can help improve your overall bond.
Help you notice your baby’s emotional and physical cues: Infants can’t speak, so parents have to interpret their physical cues to make sense of what your baby is trying to say. Massage can help you tune into all those small physical and emotional cues–so you’ll likely have a better idea of what your infant needs when.
How to Work Massage into Your Daily Routines
There are many ways to perform an infant massage. You can focus on the back, the hands, the feet, the shoulders, the legs, and more. In most cases, it’s a good idea to focus on slow, steady movements. Many experts recommend using the same motion 3-5 times before moving on to the next motion. It’s important to observe your infant closely and stop at the first sign of discomfort.
When you do the massage, make sure your infant is somewhere soft, warm, and comfortable. Aim for medium pressure, but stay sensitive to what your infant is communicating. (That pressure might be too much or too little.) You can use different techniques depending on whether your infant’s umbilical cord stump has fallen off or not.
You can set aside special time to massage, or you can try to work it into your daily routine. Here are some tips to help with that:
During feeding times, you can gently (but firmly, so it doesn’t tickle) massage your baby’s foot.
During changing times, you can sneak in a quick leg or arm massage.
After baths, it’s easy to wrap your baby in a towel and provide leg, back, or arm massage. Just make sure to keep your baby covered and warm!
When you are carrying your baby, you can give them little foot massages.
Find small moments to stay in contact with your baby throughout the day so you can give them mini-massages.
Remember that if your baby does not seem to be enjoying the massage, it’s okay to take a break. There are other ways to ensure your baby gets the touch time that they need!
Infant Massage Resources
Many parents are hesitant to start using infant massage because they are unsure of what techniques to use. Fortunately, there are a wide variety of resources available to parents today, including online guides and YouTube videos. This webinar on baby massage from healthychildren.org is another resource. It’s important to ensure these resources come from reputable sources, such as well-regarded associations, news organizations, or parent groups.
Using practiced and proven infant massage techniques can help your baby be a little happier, improve bonds, and make your life as a parent a bit easier. To discuss your baby’s health or schedule a wellness visit, contact our Northrook or Chicago area offices!