Touch is one of the earliest developed abilities of babies. When a baby is still in her mother’s womb, it begins to develop touch. Rich tactile stimulation has an important impact on intelligence and emotional development. Parents should contact their babies more, which can not only improve the parent-child relationship, but also lay a solid foundation for the future growth and learning of babies. Now, we will have a comprehensive understanding of babies’ touch through the following 8 points, so as to better promote the development of babies’ touch.
Tactile Sensation is the Most Important Sensation
Tactile sensation is the earliest and most basic sensation of the human body, and it is also the most widely distributed and complex sensory system of the human body. Touch is the main way for newborn babies to understand the world. Through multi-tactile exploration, it helps to promote motor and cognitive development. Therefore, good tactile stimulation is an indispensable factor for the growth of babies. Babies need continuous tactile stimulation from birth. Through the embrace and touch of parents, babies can get a sense of satisfaction and comfort, and a sense of being loved and security.
The first part of the tactile system is the skin. The acceptance and the speed of information transmission of skin vary from person to person. Therefore, to give sensory stimulation must vary from person to person.
The fetus already has a tactile sensation.
Touch is one of the earliest sensations in human beings. The fetus already has tactile sensation in its mother’s womb. When the mother touches the belly, the fetus can feel it. Generally speaking, when the fetus is about 7 weeks old, the mouth begins to respond to external tactile stimuli and can feel the surrounding environment through the skin. Another early mature system is the inner ear system, which controls the sense of balance, through the system the fetus receives stimuli from the wobble of the mother.
Because premature babies are born earlier and miss the opportunity final development and maturity in their mother’s womb, they are more sensitive to external stimuli. It is suggested that the mother should stimulate the baby’s skin at a fixed time every day to promote the development of tactile ability.
1 – Grasp the baby’s upper arm and gently press it from the arm to the wrist.
2 – Raise the baby’s arm and massage with the thumb of the other hand.
3 – Hold the baby’s hand and gently rub the back of the hand with the palm.
Tactile development of newborn babies
After the baby is born, its tactile development will gradually expand. At the age of 0-2 months, the tactile development was mainly reflex actions, which were for foraging or self-protection. By the age of 3 to 5 months, the baby can integrate the reflex movements, explore with the mouth and hands, feel the difference of various tactile sensations, and begin to understand how to make simple discrimination. By the age of 6 to 9 months, the baby’s tactile development has spread throughout the body, the baby will use all parts of the body to feel the stimulation, explore the environment. After 10 months of age, the baby’s tactile positioning became clearer and clearer, and began to distinguish the different materials he contacts with.
Mom and dad embracing their newborn baby is a good start to establish intimate contact. Babies need to face a new environment different from the uterus after born, will inevitably have a sense of helplessness that does not adapt. If you hold your baby in your arms, let him feel warm skin contact and listen to the familiar heart beating, the anxiety of adapting to the new environment will reduce naturally.
Benefits of tactile stimulation
By touching and stimulating the skin, it can stimulate the baby’s nervous system, especially the brain’s nervous system, and then produce integration and maturation. It should be noted that crawling is an indispensable process for the growth of babies, which can obtain abundant tactile stimulation and experience. During the crawling process, the baby’s brain also collates and compares the stimuli it receives to promote brain development.
