For your baby, you are an inexhaustible source of hugs. You are always there to calm your needs; to cradle and comfort him when he is sad, sick or just needs to feel your warmth. Your hugs make you feel better instantly and have an analgesic effect backed by science.
But did you know that hugging your baby is also very positive for you? One study has found that hugging the baby has a positive impact on the mother's emotional health and helps prevent postpartum depression.
The hug improves the mother-child bond
A study published in the "The American Journal of Maternal" newspaper revealed that skin-to-skin contact or kangaroo method can minimize, and even help prevent, postpartum depression, which affects to a lesser or greater degree aBetween 10 and 20% of recent mothers.
In addition, and according to this study, the kangaroo method reduces maternal anxiety and promotes the creation of a safe bond between mother and baby.But hugging the baby not only improves the mood of the mother. Speaking to the journal "Scientific American," the professor of psychology and researcher at the Canadian University St. Francis Xavier, Ann Bigelow, suggested that hugs can also positively affect parenting.
"Mothers who hug their babies very much are more sensitive to their signals during the first three months of life, and they respond better to their attention, so the relationship between them is easier from the first moment" - says Bigelow.
Research shows that the physical act of hugging or touching someone can help people feel less stressed. This is because cortisol levels, the hormone that controls stress, are reduced when there is affectionate physical contact by another person.
A subsequent study published in the journal "Proceedings of the National Academy of Science" also found that hugging the baby increases the release of oxytocin, the "love hormone".
"Oxytocin is a neuropeptide, which promotes feelings of affection, trust and union. It really establishes the biological basis and structure to connect with other people" - says Matt Hertenstein, psychologist at DePauw University
Hug your baby improve your mental, emotional and physical well-beingIt will help in your brain development, strengthen your immune system, calm you and boost your self-esteem. And the powers that a "simple" hug can have are inexhaustible!
A baby is never going to get used to taking him, but if there is so much scientific evidence supporting this action, there is no reason not to hug, touch, feel and kiss our babies as much as we want.
IStock photos
Via motherly
In Babies and More Postpartum depression is more frequent than you imagine, but it has a solution, Why all parents should practice the Kangaroo Method with their babies, It can happen to anyone: Chrissy Teigen model confesses that he struggles with postpartum depression , Baby crying activates the same brain mechanisms in mothers of different cultures, Seven ways to calm your baby's cry
