Holding Your Baby Skin-to-Skin

Your bare chest is the best place for your baby to adjust to life outside the womb. Your baby smells you, hears you, feels you and gets to know you. Skin-to-skin contact means holding your bare baby against your bare chest or tummy.

Your Baby's First Hours

The first hours of snuggling skin-to-skin help you and your baby bond and get to know each other. Hold your baby belly-down on your chest or tummy soon after birth. Keep cuddling skin-to-skin as often as possible in the months after birth. The benefits for bonding and breastfeeding continue long after that. Skin-to-skin is also better for babies born prematurely or by Caesarean birth.

Benefits of Holding Your Baby Skin-to-Skin

Babies:

• Breastfeed better
• Cry less and are calmer
• Stay warmer
• Enjoy more comfort from you
• Have better blood sugar levels
• Are protected by some of your good bacteria

Mothers:

• Breastfeed more easily
• Learn when your baby is getting hungry
• Bond more with your baby
• Gain confidence and satisfaction caring for your baby

Skin-to-skin helps you breastfeed

• Your baby is more likely to have a successful first breastfeed
• Your baby may breastfeed sooner and longer
• You will make more breast milk
• Helps your baby breastfeed when sleepy

Family and skin-to-skin

Your family members can also spend skin-to-skin time with your baby. If you have a partner, plan skin-to-skin time together with your baby. It's a great way for you and your partner to spend time together and bond with your baby.

Hold your baby skin-to-skin as much as possible.