7 Benefits Of Skin-To-Skin Contact With Baby After Delivery

Use this technique to promote better bonding, immunity, and thermoregulation in babies.

Medically reviewed by Dr. Burcu Saygan Karamürsel, MD Dr. Burcu Saygan Karamürsel Dr. Burcu Saygan KaramürselMD insta_icon Specialty: Obstetrics and GynecologyExperience: 22 years
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Use this technique to promote better bonding, immunity, and thermoregulation in babies.

Skin-to-skin contact with babies refers to a parent placing the baby’s belly-side down upon their bare chest or abdomen. The first time a parent makes skin-to-skin contact with their baby is immediately after birth.

Holding a baby in this manner boosts parent-baby bonding and makes the baby feel secure and warm. Further, it provides emotional satisfaction and reduces stress for new parents. Therefore, experts encourage parents to have frequent and longer skin-to-skin contact sessions with their babies to reap its lasting mutual benefits.

Keep reading as we share the benefits of skin-to-skin contact for you and the baby and how to do it correctly.

What Happens During Skin-to-skin Contact?

About 15 to 45 minutes postpartum, the mother’s oxytocin levels rise, stirring positive maternal feelings (1). Experts recommend utilizing this time to make skin-to-skin contact with the baby. During this time, the mother cherishes her baby’s soft touch and smells, strokes, and engages with them. Doing so relaxes the mother-baby duo, causing a further surge in oxytocin production that boosts milk production.

On the other hand, the newborn placed on their mother’s chest hears their mother’s heartbeat and experiences her warmth. It makes them feel comfortable and relaxed, which is why they cease crying and fall asleep. But when the mother makes sounds, babies respond by moving their arms, shoulders, and head briefly. They also explore the breast area, which is vital to learn self-attachment and begin breastfeeding (2).

What Are The Benefits Of Skin-to-skin Contact?

Whether you had vaginal birth or cesarean, immediate skin-to-skin contact postpartum holds several benefits for you and your baby (2) (3) (4).

Benefits for the baby

  1. Less crying: Research shows that babies who have skin-to-skin contact with their mothers immediately after birth tend to cry less than those who don’t (5). The mother’s touch and warmth reassure the baby, calming them down and making them feel safe.
  2. Prompt breastfeeding initiation: During skin-to-skin contact, babies explore their mothers’ breasts and learn to self-latch by nuzzling, smelling, and licking around the breast area. It helps the baby find the nipple, latch, and begin breastfeeding. Experts state that a baby who latches to their mother’s breast after birth is less likely to have breastfeeding issues.
  3. Better thermoregulation: Newborns can’t regulate their body temperature as adults do. It is why they can lose their body heat four times faster, increasing oxygen use by ten percent (6). To avert this cardiorespiratory load, experts suggest encouraging skin-to-skin contact immediately after birth. Research shows that skin-to-skin contact for an hour is equivalently effective as a radiant warmer (7).
  4. Good bacteria transfer: Other than the birth canal, skin-to-skin contact is a way to transfer bacteria from the mother’s skin to the baby. This transfer of the mother’s bacteria supports the development of the baby’s immune system, which is necessary to fight infections.

Furthermore, skin-to-skin contact could help stabilize the baby’s glucose levels, help cardiorespiratory functions, and support healthy growth in the long run. Skin-to-skin contact is referred to as “kangaroo care” when given to babies in intensive care. It can provide the following additional benefits.

  • Improved oxygen saturation
  • Reduced stress (reduce cortisol levels)
  • Enhanced baby growth and development warranting reduced hospital stay

Benefits for the mother

  1. Adequate milk supply: Skin-to-skin contact boosts oxytocin and prolactin release in the mother’s body. These hormones facilitate breast milk production and supply, necessary for optimum availability of breast milk.
  2. Less anxiety and stress: During skin-to-skin contact, the mother’s body releases several hormones, such as oxytocin, prolactin, and endorphins (feel good or happy hormone). These hormones create a surge in maternal emotions that strengthen the mother-baby bond. Also, they relax the mother, reduce anxiety and stress, and make her feel loved. All these effects are essential to reduce the risk of postpartum depression, which several mothers experience.
  3. Better communication: When mothers spend time in skin-to-skin contact with their babies, they understand their hunger and satiety cues better. They also learn to spot their baby’s signs of discomfort early, making mothers confident enough to trust their instincts for their baby.

Besides these benefits, the release of oxytocin hormone during skin-to-skin contact causes the uterus to contract and reduces bleeding. It facilitates better postpartum recovery and healing.     

Do Dads Need Skin-to-skin Contact Too?

Yes, just like mothers, dads should also have frequent skin-to-skin contact with their baby. It will help regulate the baby’s body temperature and heartbeat. Besides, it will stir in paternal instincts making the father feel more confident, responsible, and protective toward the baby.

When a father holds the baby skin-to-skin, it strengthens the dad-baby bond, necessary to develop trust and security. Later, this bonding helps the father feed their baby comfortably while the mother catches up on some rest. During cesarean deliveries, dads are usually the first ones to have skin-to-skin contact with the baby. 

How Long To Continue Skin-to-skin Contact?

There is no definite time limit for having skin-to-skin contact with your baby. According to experts, having frequent skin-to-skin contact in the first few months after birth can help keep your baby calm. You may aim to have maximum skin-to-skin contact during each breastfeeding session.

Babies may respond differently as they grow older. If you notice your baby becomes restless or tries to move away during skin-to-skin contact, then perhaps it is time to give them some space. You could probably switch to other forms of bonding, such as cuddling and playing along with your baby.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. How long should dads do skin-to-skin?

According to a study, a 15 minutes skin-to-skin between father and child for 45 to 120 minutes after birth has shown positive physiological effects on the baby (8).

2. Does breastfeeding count as skin-to-skin?

Yes, any physical contact between the mother and the baby, such as during breastfeeding, can be considered skin-to-skin (9). It comforts and baby and improves their bonding with the mother.

Skin-to-skin contact between the baby and mother immediately after birth has several benefits for both of them. Frequent skin-to-skin contact in the first few months has several benefits for the baby. Both mother and father can do it, and you can include it in your daily routine. It calms the baby, improves the bond between mother and child, and helps boost breast milk production. In addition, the skin-to-skin contact has several short-term and long-term benefits too.

Key Pointers

  • Postpartum skin-to-skin contact of mother and baby boosts the release of the hormone oxytocin resulting in a surge of maternal instinct and milk production.
  • Less crying, better thermoregulation, transfer of good bacteria, and reduced stress are a few benefits.
  • The mother experiences better milk flow, less anxiety, and stronger bonding with her newborn.
  • Skin-to-skin contact between the father and the baby helps boost the dad-baby bond.

References

1. Infant nutrition and feeding; USDA
2. Skin-to-skin contact; UNICEF
3. The importance of skin-to-skin with baby after delivery; Sanford Health
4. Give ’Em Some Skin; Stanford Children’s Health
5.K Christensson et al.; Separation distress call in the human neonate in the absence of maternal body contact; NCBI
6. Keeping Your Baby Warm; University of Rochester Medical Center
7. Monica M. Myron et al.; Skin-to-Skin Contact, the New Radiant Warmer; JOGNN
8. Ana Ayala et al. (2021); Newborn infants who received skin-to-skin contact with fathers after Cesarean sections showed stable physiological patterns; Acta Paediatricia; Nurturing the Child
9. Breastfeeding: The first few days; NHS UK
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Dr. Burcu Saygan Karamürsel
Dr. Burcu Saygan KaramürselMD
Burcu Saygan Karamürsel is a board certified obstetrics - gynecology and maternal-fetal medicine specialist with 22 years of experience. She is currently working in Ankara,Turkey. A graduate from Hacettepe University Medical School, she has also attended a fellowship programme at Bonn University Hospital, Perinatology Department.

Read full bio of Dr. Burcu Saygan Karamürsel
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