Tuesday 12th August 2008 News Index

Baby massages are the perfect way to calm and soothe newborns and maximise bonding, a journalist has claimed.

Hayley Draper, assistant news editor for the Coventry Telegraph, took her five-month-old son Dylan to a massage class just for babies and was impressed with the results.

Despite finding it hard to stop oiled-up Dylan slipping around the mat during the first session, he seemed to enjoy the second class much more and learned how to relax, she claimed.

During the classes, parents are shown how to stroke and stretch their baby's limbs and taught different methods for certain purposes, such as a tummy rub to help those with colic.

"I'm not sure how many people would find time to fit a full massage in every day but once you know the basics it's easy to incorporate a mini-massage into a bathtime and bedtime routine, and for mums and dads with colicky babies the tummy rub has got to be worth a try," Ms Draper wrote.

The Mirror recently reported that massaging the bump during pregnancy can improve the mother-baby bond and also baby's overall health.

According to the newspaper, the baby's immune system gets a boost every time they are massaged, increasing their resistance to allergies and asthma.

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