ecobrief I
THE NEUROSCIENCE OF SKIN-TO-SKIN CONTACT
nternational Babywearing Week, from October 7 to 13, pro- motes Kangaroo Care, a technique in which an infant wearing a cloth diaper is held, skin-to-skin, bare-chest to bare-chest and ventral-surface to ventral-surface, by the mother, father or others. The event is sponsored by Babywearing International, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to promote Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) as a universally accepted practice. KMC for premature infants right from birth was imple-
Naples resident Lyn Hunter with her twins
mented by Nils Bergman, M.D., resulting in dramatic improvements in the survival of premature babies. According to Bergman’s studies, the maternal-infant skin-to- skin contact is the essential developmental environment for DNA and the brain, both of which are exceptionally active in development before normal birth in pre- term infants. The more preterm the baby, the more skin-to-skin contact is needed. “Newborn care provided by closed servo-controlled incubators results in worse
physiological outcomes and stability than the same care provided in skin- to-skin contact on the mother’s chest,” reports Bergman, who emphasizes that skin-to-skin contact is for all newborns. As children grow, a cloth baby
sling or baby carrier can be used to car- ry the child on the front, hip or back. Parents have options ranging from the ubiquitous frontpacks to lesser known, but more comfortable, functional and attractive baby carriers designed by work-at-home mothers that are experi- enced babywearers.
Resource: Eco-Baby and Home, 2355 Vanderbilt Beach Rd., Ste.150, Naples. For more information, call 239-596- 2661 or visit BabywearingInternational. org. See ad, page 57.
natural awakenings
October 2013
21
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64