Experts explain why 60 minutes of skin-to-skin contact is vital for both mother and newborn

The first time a mother holds a newborn close to her skin sets the tone for their relationship, but science shows this “golden hour” is vital to their health.

Medical experts have found that the first 60 minutes of continuous skin-to-skin contact helps regulate a baby’s temperature, control breathing, and reduce the risk of low blood sugar.

Not only is this critical to the new life that has just entered the world, but the experience also ensures that the mother produces oxytocin, promoting bonding and milk supply.

Experts recommend immediately putting the baby face down on the mother’s stomach, covering both with a blanket.

This position slows down the production of adrenaline hormones in the mother so as not to interfere with the production of the hormones oxytocin and prolactin.

Tenelle Choal, a certified nurse midwife at Sanford Health in South Dakota, told statement: “Golden hour is very helpful and crucial for a few more years in the relationship between mom and baby.

“It’s very helpful in stabilizing a newborn coming out of the womb as well as establishing a bond.”

French obstetrician Michael Auden described in 1977 that newborns were looking for the breast during the first hour of life, which started the notion of the golden hour in the medical community.

And studies have shown that 60 minutes or more of instant skin-to-skin contact increases the percentage of breastfeeding for a baby at three months of age.

Golden hour has also been shown to increase the amount of time a child is in a state of quiet anxiety and reduce crying.

As soon as a mother brings her newborn closer, oxytocin is immediately released in her body, reducing postpartum hemorrhage and the risk of postpartum hemorrhage and allowing faster delivery of the placenta and uterine involution.

“For the baby, it helps with thermoregulation, or a fancy term for helping the baby regulate temperature as well as stabilize blood sugar levels,” Choal said.

“And then for mom, it helps mom produce hormones that help her breastfeed and produce milk, as well as reduce stress, anxiety, and depression for her.”

Another way to ease attachment, especially for new parents who couldn’t make it through golden hour due to medical complications, is to hold the newborn in your arms long after he’s been discharged from the hospital.

New parents have long been advised to put their newborns to bed so as not to spoil them, but contrary to popular myth, hugs activate oxytocin, increase attachment, and stimulate their brains to further develop.

Not only does it keep your little one warm, but it also controls crying, regulates breathing and heart rate, helps with weight gain and promotes growth.

These results are compared to children who have not had physical attention and have been found to be at higher risk of behavioral, emotional and social problems as they get older.

Years of research have proven the importance of touch between caregiver and child. parents reports.

One article published in 2020 welcomes skin-to-skin contact, where the infant is dressed in only a diaper and placed on the mother’s bare breasts.

This result leads to the release of oxytocin, which is associated with building trust and relationships, as well as the activation of sensory nerve fibers.

The study highlights several others, one of which notes that contact is also beneficial for the caregiver.

“Their results point to a nurturing and predictive quality of parental touch as a primary means of early contact and communication,” the article says.

A team of researchers at the Ohio National Children’s Hospital followed 125 premature and full-term babies to see how they respond to touch, such as cuddling with a parent or not-so-light touch during medical procedures.

The results showed that infants who were gently touched had more brain responses than when they endured another touch during the procedures.

According to Parents Magazine, this suggests that “good” touch helps brain development.

Natalie Maitre, who participated in the study, said in a statement: “We certainly hoped to see that a more positive touch experience in the hospital would help children have a more typical touch experience when they went home.”

“But we were very surprised to learn that if infants experience more painful procedures at an early age, it may affect their sense of gentle touch.”

“To young parents, including those whose young children have to undergo complex medical procedures, be courageous: your touch is more important than you think.”