Infant Massage Benefits for Children and Parents
by Karolee Stauduhar, PT

When you hear the word massage it may conjure up thoughts of hot rocks, incense and soothing music. If you are like most adults (especially moms) you may not be able to think of a better way to spend an hour than to relax and soothe tense muscles. Although infant massages also help baby to help relieve stress, there are so many more benefits. Four main categories of benefits derived from infant massage include stimulation, relaxation, relief and bonding.

Whether your baby is a newborn or several months old, massage can bring immediate and lasting results. Expectant parents often take infant massage instruction in advance so they are ready to begin right from the start. Infant massage is a preventative program that provides a loving touch right from the start. Understanding and beginning touch early in life can improve the quality of parenting and family life and promote the well-being of the infant. Early psychological and sensory input is essential in facilitating the development of all infants.

Infant massage is being adopted in many hospitals and clinics across the country as part of their standard community and parenting education programs. Many nurses, occupational and physical therapists and other health care professionals are also incorporating infant massage into their practices.

Besides offering an intimate time for babies to bond and improving general well being there are many positive physical and emotional results. Massaging helps to normalize muscle tone, improve midline orientation, improve respiration and circulation as well as helping baby with congestion, gas and colic. Expanding research has documented the advantages of gentle touch and massage for healthy full term as well as significant benefits for pre-term newborns. Evidence-based research has found infant massage facilitates weight gain in preterm infants and lowers levels of cortisol, the stress hormone. Infant massage research has shown improvements in cognitive and motor development at 8 months of age as well as neurological development.

Babies are not the only ones that benefit through infant massage. Parents and primary caregivers are taking part in a bonding exercise during infant massage. There is eye to eye contact, touch, voice, smell, movement and thermal regulation that all foster parent-infant bonding and attachment. In situations where parents work, daily massage helps compensate for the separation by reestablishing the bond and providing quality time. Massage also encourages pre-verbal communication and helps parents feel more confident and competent in caring for their children.

Does this mean you can start massaging your baby now and expect to achieve your desired results? Well yes and no. Parents have a built-in desire to nurture their children, but our culture sometimes doesn’t encourage cuddling, holding or massaging that is essential for building self-esteem, good motor development and body image. Often infants go from container to container (car seat to bouncy seat). Learning infant massage from a certified instructor gives parents a comprehensive hands-on proven approach to help our babies thrive and grow into confident secure, happy children who have experienced loving touch right from the start.

A typical course could consist of 4 one-hour classes in a small group setting where you would get hands-on time with your baby and learning specific massage techniques. Other courses may give a general overall introduction to massage and include video presentation of massage strokes and handling skills.

Benefits for Baby

Benefits for parents

Karolee Stauduhar is a licensed physical therapist at Central Florida Therapy Solutions. She works at in our Longwood and Orange city clinic that provides speech, occupational, and physical therapy services to pediatric patients. She was a graduate from the Physical Therapy Program at the University of Minnesota in 1987. Her professional experience includes hospital, private outpatient settings, and support services in school settings. She is a certified infant massage instructor through Loving Touch, International.