All parents out there who can't keep their arms off their children are on the right path, and their kids will thank them for it one day.
Reportedly, researchers have found that hugging, as a form of physical affection, during the developmental period of the baby, is incredibly important. The affection demonstrated through touch stimulates the growth of their brains, and they become more intelligent.
Researchers at the Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Ohio, examined 125 babies, born both preterm and full-term. They analyzed the way light physical touch affects their brain development cognition, perception, and social development.
The survey discovered that early, gentle displays of affection from parents and caregivers could have lasting effects on the ways the baby brains react to soft touch. So early exposure to hugs could help pre-term babies experience affection as pleasant instead of overwhelming while also stimulate positive brain responses.
Touch is the first sense to develop. They found that supportive experiences, like breastfeeding, skin-to-skin care, affectionate hugs, and similar, triggered strong brain responses. That helped the brain to develop faster and more healthily.
As soon as the baby is born, it is time for skin-to-skin contact and guiding the baby toward breastfeeding. Merely the holding of the baby within the first hour normalizes the baby’s body temperature, heartbeat, and pattern of breathing.
On the other hand, painful experiences, such as skin punctures and tube insertions, inhibited the brain responses to the same touch stimuli.
The results showed that babies subjected to more affection by parents or hospital staff showed stronger brain response. So being gentle with your baby will contribute to the development of their brain.
According to Dr. Nathalie Maitre, the lead researcher behind this study, the body contact to your kid or rocking them in your arms, makes a big difference in the development of their brains.
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