Skin to skin

There is a growing body of evidence that skin-to-skin contact after the birth helps babies and their mothers. The practice: 

• calms and relaxes both mother and baby 

• regulates the baby’s heart rate and breathing, helping them to better adapt to life outside the womb 

• stimulates digestion and an interest in feeding 

• regulates temperature 

• enables colonisation of the baby’s skin with the mother’s friendly bacteria, thus providing protection against infection 

• stimulates the release of hormones to support breastfeeding and mothering. 

Skin-to-skin contact also provides benefits for babies in the neonatal unit, in that it: 

• improves oxygen saturation 
• reduces cortisol (stress) levels, particularly following painful procedures 
• encourages pre-feeding behaviour 
• assists with growth 
• may reduce hospital stay 
• improves milk volume if the mother expresses following a period of skin-to-skin contact, with the expressed milk containing the most up-to-date antibodies

When a mother holds her baby in skin-to-skin contact after birth, it initiates strong instinctive behaviours in both. The mother will experience a surge of maternal hormones and begin to smell, stroke and engage with her baby. Babies’ instincts after birth will drive them to follow a unique process, which if left uninterrupted will result in them having a first breastfeed. If they are enabled to familiarise themselves with their mother’s breast and achieve self-attachment, it is very likely that they will recall this at subsequent feeds, resulting in fewer breastfeeding problems. 

After birth, babies who are placed skin-to-skin on their mother’s chest will: 

• briefly cry a very distinctive birth cry 

• enter a stage of relaxation where they display very little movement as they recover from the birth 

• start to wake up, opening their eyes and showing some response to their mother’s voice 

• begin to make small movements of the arms, shoulders and head; as these movements increase, the baby will draw up their knees and appear to move or crawl towards the breast 

• often rest once they have found the breast (this can often be mistaken as the baby not being hungry or not wanting to feed) 

• begin to familiarise with the breast after a period of rest, perhaps by nuzzling, smelling and licking around the area (this familiarisation period can last for some time and is important, so should not be rushed; try to remain patient and allow the baby to work out how to best attach themselves) 

• self-attach and begin to feed (it may be that mother and baby need a little help with positioning at this stage) 

• come off the breast once they have had a chance to suckle for a period of time. Following this, often both mother and baby will fall asleep 

Most term healthy babies will follow this process, providing it is not interrupted by anything, for example taking the baby away to weigh or the mother going for a shower. Interrupting the process before the baby has completed this sequence or trying to hurry them through the stages may lead to problems at subsequent breastfeeds. If the mother has been given a lot of analgesia during labour, the baby may be drowsy and this process can take longer. 

Many parents find that skin to skin contact is a wonderful way to help soothe and bond with their baby.  

Laying your newborn either nude or just wearing a nappy on your bare skin, perhaps under a blanket or dressing gown is how most parents enjoy skin to skin contact. Mothers often find that this contact increases their milk supply and fathers, and other caregivers enjoy how calm it can make a baby.  

Often known as “kangaroo care”, it has a range of benefits to both adults and babies. 

Benefits of skin to skin: 

• Calming and relaxing for the caregiver and the baby 

• Helps baby to adapt to life outside the womb 

• Regulates baby’s heart rate, breathing and temperature 

• Stimulates the baby’s appetite and desire to feed 

• Increases levels of the feeding parent’s hormone production, increasing milk supply

Kangaroo care and skin-to-skin contact: FAQs | Baby & toddler articles & support | NCT