Dr. Anju Goel

"No soul can replace a mother’s emotion. No individual can bestow the warmth of mother’s lap."

As a hen hatches the egg, we must warm, nourish, protect and feel the divine touch of our baby. In the early 1970s, motivated by problems arising from the shortage of incubators and also the impact of mother and newborn separation, Colombian pediatrician Edgar Rey developed a simple method later named ‘Kangaroo mother care’ (KMC). KMC has three main components including thermal care through continuous skin-to-skin contact by being tied with a cloth to the front usually of the mother; support for exclusive breastfeeding or other appropriate feedings; and early recognition and response to complications. As less number of people
tend to touch your baby, thus reducing the risk of hospital-acquired the infection. 

From various studies, it has been revealed that there are distinct benefits Celestial Love when babies share a bed with their parents compared to when they sleep in isolation. The physical closeness of your baby at night promotes increased secretion of the hormone prolactin in the mother. This encourages the production of breast milk. The physical proximity of the breast enables your baby to feed easily at night and this will promote optimal nutrition and healthy development. It has been found in a research that, mothers respond more quickly to the baby’s needs. Being physically close to your baby at night sharpens your intuition making you more responsive when your baby is in need. 

Babies tend to sleep better and are less likely to wake-up when another person is in touching distance. Comfort and security from co- sleeping help your baby to make the transitions between sleep stages more smooth without waking up. Maternal sleep cycles adapt to those of their babies. With more frequent light sleep cycles, it is easier for you to respond to your baby and then go back to sleep, then it would be to be roused out of deep sleep to deal with a crying, and more distressed baby. 

The closeness of your baby is the natural way to regulate the temperature when a baby is close to the mother he can never be cold nor be too hot. Mother is likely to know if the baby has a fever. Close baby contact, warmth, untouched at night helps to promote babies optimal physical and emotional development. Being fully satisfied at night will help your baby develop into an affectionate child with a strong sense of self-worth. 

Sharing a bed allows you to enjoy more contact with your baby and helps to alleviate anxiety about absence during the day. Father’s who are absent all day at work, benefit from the physical closeness and skin contact at night and the daily satisfaction of the strong protective instinct they may have for the baby. 

To sleep with the baby use a bed big enough for all of you. Position your baby so that, she may not fall or smothered by pillows or bedding. Place her on bed to sleep without pillow. Baby should not be dressed too warmly. Use several light weight blankets. Sleep naked or wear light clothes. Never fall asleep with baby lying on you. Never smoke or sleep drunk. Enjoy your baby’s presence, feel the touch and thank Almighty every moment for his blessings. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a Pediatrician.