re: Landon Donovan is a dad...

Skin to skin contact is good way for parents to bond with their newborn.

quote:

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Benefits for Baby: 1. Accelerates Brain Development:
Skin to skin contact is a multi-sensory experience. Holding baby on Dad’s skin increases the development of essential neural pathways, which accelerates brain maturation. In addition, research shows that kangaroo’ed babies spend more time in quiet sleep, which enhances organizational patterns in the brain and decreases baby’s stress responses.

2. Calms, Soothes & Reduces Stress:
The direct connection with Dad’s skin during Kangaroo Care soothes baby so much that babies’ cortisol levels (stress hormone) are measurably lowered after only 20 minutes of being held skin to skin. And, remarkably, their pain is reduced when held skin to skin. As a result, babies who experience regular Kangaroo Care often cry less and appear less agitated.

3. Improves Quality of Sleep:
Development of mature brain function in infants depends on the quality of their sleep cycling. During skin to skin, most infants fall asleep easily, and achieve what is called “Quiet Sleep”, a natural deep sleep for 60 minutes or more.

4. Enhances Immune System:
Baby’s immune system is stimulated when placed skin to skin. Dad’s mature immune system passes antibodies through his skin to baby. Being on Dad’s skin also increases baby’s skin hydration, which provides a protective barrier from harmful bacteria entering baby’s skin.

5. Stimulates Digestion & Weight Gain:
Kangaroo Care reduces cortisol and somatostatin in babies, allowing for better absorption and digestion of nutrients, while decreasing gastrointestinal problems. With a reduction of these hormones, baby’s bodies preserve brown fat (the healthy fat babies are born with), helping to maintain birth weight and keep a warm body temperature. As a result, baby’s body does not have to burn its own fat stores to stay warm, resulting in better weight gain. After just one hour of skin to skin, the infant’s digestive system is restored to the right balance for optimal GI function.

6. Synchronizes Heart Rate + Breathing:
Simply put, through time spent skin to skin with Dad, baby’s body learns to self-regulate, resulting in a regular and stable heartbeat and breathing pattern. 75% of sporadic breathing and slow heart rate episodes are reduced through skin-to-skin contact.

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Now, was that the best picture to Tweet out? Probably not. But he's not holding the baby shirtless just for the hell of it.

And Talon is a stupid name.

Such a strange picture

quote:

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Skin to skin contact is good way for parents to bond with their newborn.

Now, was that the best picture to Tweet out? Probably not. But he's not holding the baby shirtless just for the hell of it.

And Talon is a stupid name.

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/thread.