Make Skin-to-Skin Contact With Your Baby

The positive effect of skin-to-skin contact on mother-infant development is now a fact known by many parents. Studies show that skin-to-skin contact between mother and baby at the time of first birth increases the rate of breastfeeding twice. So, what is skin-to-skin contact and how is it applied?

BHT CLINIC Istanbul Tema Hospital Gynecology and Obstetrics Specialist Op. Dr. Neslihan Bahat says that the most powerful way for the baby to establish a bond with her mother at the first birth is skin to skin contact.

The First Bonding Experience Matters

Stating that attachment is the baby's most important war to exist, Op. Dr. Neslihan Bahat said, “After the first scream, a baby looks for a place to hold on to breathlessly. He grasps, holds, wraps everything that touches his palms and tries to hold onto the world with his hands. Life consists of attachments. One is attached first to the mother, then to the father, the family and then to life. "The first step in this process is the skin-to-skin contact bond between mother and baby."

How is Skin-to-Skin Contact Applied?

Stating that Skin-Skin Contact is an application that starts immediately after birth, Op. Dr. Neslihan Bahat gives the following information: “Skin contact is applied by placing the newborn baby naked without a blanket and clothing on the mother's bare breast immediately after birth. With this application, sensory stimuli such as touch, temperature and smell facilitate behavioral interaction between mother and baby. "

Three Elements of Secure Attachment

Kiss. Dr. Neslihan Bahat says that the first attachment experience of the child will be the basis of the attachment experiences that the child will experience later and adds: “There are three basic elements of secure attachment;

• Eye contact
• Skin contact
• Auditory contact

Successful completion of these elements is of great importance in the growth and development of the baby throughout his life. The sound that babies hear the most in their mother's womb is the heart sound of the mother. Therefore, babies crying as soon as they are born calm down when they are placed on the mother's breast. When she lifts her head, she meets the mother's eye. This process is the moment of first meeting with the mother. Meanwhile, the mother shares her feelings by talking to her baby. Thus, the eye, skin and voice, which are the three basic elements of attachment, are successfully completed in the first moments. "

Rank First on the List

Stating that physicians should inform prospective parents more frequently about skin-to-skin contact, Op. Dr. Neslihan Bahat gives the following advice: “We all prepare more or less a list of needs for our new born baby. At the top of the list should be unquestionably skin-to-skin contact. All the remaining shortcomings of your baby can be met over time. However, there will be no compensation for skin-to-skin contact that is not done back to the moment of birth. If contact with the Skin is provided immediately after birth, the sense of love and trust at the moment when individuals who make up the society open their eyes to life will be met from infancy. " said.