In the past 30 years infant touch and massage has become recognized as a powerful means to promote infant development, attachment with caregivers, and a multitude of physiological and emotional benefits. The current Infant Touch and Massage Instructor Training curricula reflects an organic paradigm shift upward in the sophistication of family-centered touch and massage. Individualized touch and massage instruction has replaced the infant massage “routine”. Touch and massage guided by the observation of parent and infant behavior, infant states of consciousness, developmental maturity, and the evident needs of the infant have replaced the generic, linear succession of strokes that have demonstrated a limited potential for benefiting families.
Infant touch and massage is rapidly expanding as a parenting tradition on a global scale, as Infant Massage Instructors are now active in over 40 countries worldwide.
It is never too late to begin massage… Whether your baby is a newborn or several years old, massage can bring immediate and lasting results. Expectant parents who take infant massage instruction in advance are ready to begin this wonderful loving touch right from the start. Infant Massage is a very old parenting practice that has been modernized and is in active use today supported by evidence-based research. There is recorded history of the use and practice of infant massage amongst many different cultures around the globe. It is only in the past 30 years that infant massage has begun to appear in the western world.
Ancient Art of Infant Massage
Mothers have been practicing the art of infant massage for centuries. Based on this historical fact, it is very clear that all babies should be massaged, touched and loved to promote their social-emotional-cognitive and physical development. As an early intervention strategy and therapeutic tool, infant massage is becoming a specialty therapy in the United States. Infant massage is being embraced by a wide variety of professionals who are incorporating it into their practices to help families cope with children with special needs as well as healthy full term newborns. Techniques are simple and effective and are most likely performed by parents and primary caregivers who have been taught by certified infant massage instructors. The approach is empowering and improves the parent-infant attachment process. There is a growing body of research that supports the therapeutic benefits. Infant massage is a crucial and routine part of infant care around the world and has the ability to create great benefits for both parents and the newborn.