Are you the type of parent who always wants to cuddle with your children? If the answer is yes, then definitely don’t stop doing it!
According to new research, physical affection during the baby’s development phase is even more important than we thought.
The more you cuddle a baby, the more their brains grow, according to a recent study from Nationwide Children´s Hospital in Ohio.
125 babies, both premature and full-term, were part of the study. They were observed on how well they responded to touch.
The results showed that premature babies responded less to affection than full-term babies. But what the research also revealed was that babies who were cuddled more by their parents and/or hospital staff showed stronger brain activity.
According to researcher Dr. Nathalie Maitre, this latter finding is a significant revelation. It tells us that something as simple as physical contact can make a big difference in how the brain develops, such as rocking your baby back and forth in your arms.
“Ensuring that premature babies receive positive affection, such as skin-to-skin contact with parents, is essential for their brains to respond well. Just like babies who have fully grown inside their mother’s belly during pregnancy,” Maitre tells Science Daily.
In the end, affection is crucial for brain development. So cuddle your baby as much as you can and don’t forget to share this research. So that everyone knows how important it is to treat our children lovingly!
