Health Care for Children

Benefits for Baby
 
Today, doctors across the United States, South America, South Africa, and other countries recommend Kangaroo Care — sometimes referred to as Kangaroo Mother Care — to new moms of both premature and full-term infants. Doctors recommend that this bonding last from 60 minutes to 24 hours a day and can be performed by fathers as well.

“The more skin-to-skin [contact] the better. It should ideally start at birth, but is helpful any time,” says Dr. Nils Bergman, senior medical superintendent of Mowbray Maternity Hospital in Cape Town, Africa, where doctors deliver 7,000 children a year.

“Physiology and research provide overwhelming evidence that Kangaroo Mother Care is not only safe but superior to the use of technology such as incubators,” Bergman adds. “Depriving babies of skin-to-skin makes alternative stress pathways in the brain, which can lead to ADD, colic, sleep disorders, among other things.”

No published studies have found any harmful effects of Kangaroo Care — only its benefits. Consider these:
Healthier heart rates and respiration. Babies who suffered from respiratory distress and stayed in Kangaroo Care positions were relieved within 48 hours without respirators. A 1998 study concluded that heart rates for infants given Kangaroo Care were more regular than babies not given it.
Increased breastfeedings. A study found that infants held for more than 50 minutes were 8 times more likely to breastfeed spontaneously. Skin-to-skin contact also increases milk let-down.
Improved immunity. “Premature [babies] seem to have poor immune systems — [they're] susceptible to allergies, infections, feeding problems. Early skin-to-skin contact dramatically reduces these problems,” says Bergman.
Increased weight gain. A study concluded that infants given Kangaroo Care gained weight more quickly than babies not given it; weight gain can often lead to shorter hospital stays.
Regulated body temperature. “Mothers are able to control the infant’s temperature better than an incubator,” Bergman says. “Core temperature can rise by two degrees centigrade if baby is cold and fall 1 degree if baby is hot.”

How to Get Started

• Parents should be seated comfortably in a quiet, dimly lit room with some privacy.
• Position the baby, dressed in diaper (and cap for warmth if needed) on your bare chest for a minimum of 20 minutes.
• This bonding time can be experienced by both mother and father. If Kangaroo Care is performed around feedings, place the baby with dad after mom has breastfed.