How Important Is Skin to Skin Contact with a Newborn?

In this article, I am going to convince you of the importance of skin to skin contact with your newborn. I believe that all mothers should be allowed to participate in uninterrupted skin to skin time with their newborn during the golden hour after birth. Additionally, skin to skin contact between mother and baby has benefits that reach beyond just the first hour after birth.

Last year I taught a breastfeeding class to a group of pregnant young women. One of the mantras that I asked them to repeat back to me was, “my baby should go directly on my chest after birth.”

As a former newborn hospital pediatrician, I am an expert in newborn care and breastfeeding. In addition to formal studies on the topic, my experience has shown me that newborns that do the best spend time in skin to skin contact with their mothers. This time increases success with breastfeeding and overall transition to extra-uterine life.

The benefits of skin to skin contact are numerous. In this article, we will look at seven reasons why skin to skin contact is important for the newborn.

Stabilize Respiratory Rate and Heart Rate

One of the safest and most satisfying places for a newborn to be is on their mother’s bare chest during the first hour after birth. By placing the naked baby directly on his mother’s bare chest, we are able to help the newborn to regulate his or her body functions.

This contact between mom and baby not only keeps a newborn infant warm, but it also helps the baby to regulate their respiratory rate and heart rate.

In the first hours after birth, a newborn is at risk for tachypnea (fast breathing). This is due to the transition from breathing in liquid for all of these months to breathing air into their lungs. As a former newborn hospital pediatrician, I would frequently place a tachypneic baby on his mother’s chest to calm down their breathing rate.

In addition, labor and delivery are stressful for both mom and baby. A newborn infant’s heart rate increases in response. Skin to skin contact with their mother decreases this stress which helps to regulate the baby’s heart rate.

Regulate Body Temperature

Newborn babies are at risk for low body temperature. Not only are they wet, but they have a high surface area to body ratio. This makes them more susceptible to hypothermia. In order to keep baby warm in the early hours after birth, we place baby on mother’s skin.

During skin-to-skin contact, mom transfers her body heat to her newborn. This type of warming is superior to placing a baby in the warmer in the nursery.

Decrease Hypoglycemia

New babies are susceptible to low blood sugar. This is especially true for infants that have risk factors. These risk factors include premature birth, large or small for gestational age or born to a mother with diabetes. Preterm infants as well as full term newborn infants both benefit from skin time with their mothers. The calming effect of skin to skin contact reduces a new baby’s stress. Decreased stress allows the baby to preserve their glucose reserve.

Breastfeeding Outcomes

Uninterrupted skin to skin time in the first hour of life is known as the golden hour. This practice has been shown to increase a mother’s milk supply and rates of exclusive breastfeeding.

In addition, the effects of skin to skin contact reach far beyond the first hour of life. This type of contact also has emotional benefits for both mom and baby.

Furthermore, early skin-to-skin contact has been shown to have positive impacts on breastfeeding rates for newborns. These benefits happen both during their hospital stay and afterwards. Also, this practice benefits both term and premature babies. It improves their ability to latch onto the breast and feed effectively.

Free access to the mother’s breast through skin to skin contact allows the newborn to nurse as often as desired. Frequent breastfeeding in the first few days of life has additional benefits. Mothers who participate in early skin to skin contact breast feed more frequently. This results in a positive effect on milk production for the duration of her breastfeeding journey.

Maternal Bonding

In addition to all of the benefits for newborns, skin to skin contact for mothers provides additional emotional benefits.

As we looked at earlier, mothers experience a surge of hormones during the early postpartum period. Multiple studies have shown that mothers who engage in skin-to-skin contact have lower levels of depressive symptoms. This is compared to those who do not prioritize this time.

Furthermore, research shows that skin-to-skin contact between a mother and her baby lowers cortisol levels (a stress hormone). Decreased stress levels have positive effects on both the mother and the baby. Lowered stress makes it easier to develop a bond with a newborn who is not experiencing excessive stress.

Good Bacteria

As our understanding of the relationship between the gut microbiome and the immune system grows, we see many things. It is clear that good bacteria plays a significant part in maintaining overall health.

Skin-to-skin contact after birth allows for the transfer of beneficial microbes from the mother’s skin to her baby. In addition to breastfeeding, skin contact from birth with their mother allows for the colonization of both the baby’s skin and gut with important bacteria. As the baby’s gut is mostly sterile at the time of birth, this skin contact is important for these functions in the days after birth.

In addition, the gut microbiome is important for different aspects of human health. Friendly bacteria are involved in many functions such as digestion, metabolism, and immune system development. When a newborn is in direct contact with mother’s skin, it allows for the transfer of beneficial microbes. This includes bacteria like Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus. These bacteria colonize their gut unlike infants without this contact. Good bacteria lower the risk of respiratory infections, allergies, and gastrointestinal issues.

Decreases Crying

Research indicates that infants who receive skin-to-skin contact during painful medical procedures tend to experience reduced levels of pain. Regardless of whether it is a heel stick or a vaccination, babies remain calmer and more composed when they are in close contact with their mother.

Additionally, multiple studies show that skin to skin contact with mothers reduces the frequency and duration of crying episodes in newborn babies. The soothing impact of the close physical interaction is found to alleviate irritability and encourage a more tranquil state in newborns.

Should skin to skin contact delay other medical procedures?

When I was a newborn hospital pediatrician this question came up often. I sat on multiple committees where different people on the hospital staff had competing priorities. While the labor and delivery staff prioritized safe labor and delivery practices, the lactation staff wanted them to also prioritize uninterrupted skin to skin contact during the golden hour. Unfortunately, this time often delayed the staff from obtaining a birth weight on the newborn. This delay in entering the birth weight into the chart then delayed the newborn nursery’s staff ability to execute on the standing orders for newborn care.

While everyone agreed that holding a baby in skin to skin with their mother had many health benefits beyond just breast milk production, these competing priorities made it difficult to execute in this busy birthing hospital. Eventually, we all came to a consensus that the newborn’s weight could be obtained quickly either before or in the middle of the golden hour in order to continue both the baby’s and mother’s medical care during this most important time in their life.

Of course, this was the norm for babies who did not require immediate medical interventions. Whether it was preterm babies or full term infants, any baby who was in distress was immediately assessed and taken to the NICU if needed. After they were stabilized, kangaroo care became a priority.

How Can 127 Pediatrics Help You on Your Breastfeeding Journey?

At 127 Pediatrics, we like to consider both the needs of the mother as well as the baby when it comes to breastfeeding. We offer many free resources that can help you no matter where you are in your breastfeeding journey.

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© 127 Pediatrics, April 2024

This article is for information purposes only. Please consult your personal physician for medical advice.