The wonderful benefits of massage and how it can work wonders for your well-being as well as your health are well known. But we are not the only ones who can benefit from stress, look to the children. If you have a new baby in the house then it is your duty to begin their life with ways of keeping stress and tension out.

Parents of today are now looking for as many ways to start their children off to a positive life as possible. One of those ways is learning that traditional massage can benefit the health and growth of their newborns. Modern medicine has recognized that babies require more than a clean, safe environment and proper nutrition to survive and thrive. Touching and human interaction are as necessary for their health as food and shelter is for their survival. There are hospital nurseries that actually have volunteers come in to cuddle and caress tiny premature infants to help them achieve their weight goals and to promote the healthy development of their nervous systems.

Baby experts have recognized the vast power of massage for all newborns, even ones carried to full term. For babies that are healthy, massage increases the bond between parent and child. For children with some nervous or developmental disorders, it can minimize long-term damage or disability.

For parents of colicky babies, carefully administered massage can help to calm an infant's immature nervous and digestive system and alleviate much of the discomfort during this difficult period in early infancy. All mothers and fathers trying to relieve their child's pain can appreciate the value of his benefit for reducing the stress on their child and thus alleviating their own stress.

Many hospitals now offer classes in infant massage instruction, as do community education programs and psychological organizations. You can call your hospital to find classes near you or for referrals to organizations that teach infant massage. Opportunities for parents to comfort and bond with their newborns increases the parent's satisfaction and lowers their stress.

If your child experiences colic, talk to your physician or healthcare provider for advice on using therapeutic massage to ease the condition. If you're considering using massage as a therapeutic tool for a specific disorder, coordinate any treatment with your child's physician to be sure there are no contraindications.


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