Choosing to Breastfeed

e. Skin-to-skin contact

Skin-to-skin contact involves placing the baby wearing only a diaper, tummy down on his/her mother’s bare chest immediately after birth and during the early weeks of life. Baby may be covered lightly with a blanket. Dads can also do skin to skin contact.

Benefits:

• Strengthens the mother-baby relationship;
• Helps regulate the baby’s body temperature, respirations and heart rate;
• Promotes better baby feeds;
• Helps regulate the baby’s blood sugar;
• Provides pain relief to baby during painful procedures;
• Encourages longer duration of breastfeeding, on average by an additional six weeks.