By Dr. Lin Day, Baby Sensory
A loving touch
Babies have a biological need for clo physical affection. Nothing is more important to their emotional, physical and intellectual development than a comforting cuddle or a loving touch. What is certain is that babies who are cuddled, stroked and caresd are more likely to grow up to be loving social beings. They also gain independence and confidence, which leads on to an important milestone by the end of the first year: the ability to play alone. Babies that are regularly touched gain weight faster, develop stronger immune systems, crawl and walk sooner, sleep more soundly and cry less than babies deprived of clo physical contact.Children that are given plenty of physical affection show more task orientated behaviour, less solitary play and less aggression at school. They also achieve higher levels of educational qualifications in later life.
Touch deprivation
Numerous studies have shown that infants deprived of touch contact become lonely, isolated and troublesome children. Approximately one third of clinic referrals are for emotional disturbances, hyperactivity, aggressive behaviour and conduct disorder problems in children deprived of positive touch in early infancy. Physical symptoms such as eating disorders, excessive arm and leg hugging, overly compliant or subdued behaviour may be common in older children.
This is why early detection is so important.
In a world where xual abu has become a growing concern, some parents may avoid any form of intimate care with their infant. Practitioners are also faced with a dilemma about whether or not to hug and cuddle children, hold their hands or pick them up when they fall becau their physical affections may be misinterpreted. The Early Years Foundation Stage has addresd this important issue, stating that practitioners should not be afraid to touch or cuddle children at an ‘appropriate’ level or to give them physical comfort. In recognition of the benefits of touch for growth, development, learning and health, some pre-schools and primary schools have introduced touch therapies as part of good care practice.
Rearch
Through the work of Harry Harlow in the 1950s, and anthropologist Margaret Mead in the 1970s, it was established that early touch deprivation had overwhelming importance for healthy development in later life. Harlow for example, provided important evidence that physical contact was more important than feeding in young rhesus monkeys. Harlow placed the monkeys in cages with two substitute mothers. One of the was made of wire and provided milk and the other was covered in soft cloth. The monkeys spent most of their time clinging to the cloth monkey for comfort, even though she did not supply milk. Monkeys that were deprived of comfort became indifferent or aggressive adults and had difficulty in mating and parenting. The critical need for touch was also highlighted by Margaret Mead. Human societies that withheld physical affection in infancy had significantly higher rates of adult violence than cultures that gave their children plenty of touch stimulation in the early years. Children that experienced touch were more social, less fussy and had better intellectual and motor development than infants who spent the majority of their time out of human contact.
赵翼Health scientist James W. Prescott believed that body contact was esntial for the developing brain. Deprivation in early infancy caud neurological dysfunction which led to autistic behaviours and incread vulnerability to alcohol and drug abu in adulthood: acts that attempted to compensa
te for nsory deprivation or loss in early life. Prescott’s studies also revealed that parents who abud their children were invariably deprived of physical affection themlves during childhood.
Rearchers have also found that babies and children who were raid in orphanages without physical contact in the 1920s suffered stunted growth and had abnormal levels of the stress hormone, cortisol. Death rates for touch deprived infants less than one year of age ranged from thirty to one hundred per cent. Tho that survived had less than a fifty per cent chance of reaching puberty. Evidence also showed that the brains of infants left in cots were twenty per cent smaller than tho who were picked up, cuddled and cradled, despite adequate nutrition and hygiene.
c2b模式Sen of touch
春夏秋冬的词语In utero, touch is the first n to develop. Within three weeks of conception, the foetus develops a primitive nervous system which links skin receptors to tube-like cells at the tip of the embryo, which then expand and mature to form the spinal cord, and then the brain cells. By the sixteenth week, the foetus shows nsitivity to touch in all parts of the body and around the twenty fifth week of gestation, virtually all the nerve pathways designed to carry pain signals are in place. At full term, the n of touch is highly developed. The baby’s skin and mouth contain millions of nsory receptors 怎么用卫生巾
that register pain, temperature, light touch, deep pressure, texture, shape, weight and size. The n of touch is the primary means of experiencing the world and all other ns including sight, sound, taste, and smell are derived from it.
Touch is the last nsory system to fade as we grow older. Sadly, aging skin does not invite touching in the same way that an infant’s skin does. However, the elderly still need touch as much as they did when they were young. Without it, they may feel disconnected, isolated, lonely and unfulfilled. Touch stimulation is vital for communication, for healthy functioning of the brain and hormonal balance of the body and for physical and emotional well-being. It is also an esntial part of being loved.运动让生活更美好作文
寒假我学会了什么作文Brain development
Rearch shows that rotonin, one of the brain’s neurotransmitter substances, is significantly reduced in children who are touch deprived in early life. Low levels of rotonin are not only associated with Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, but also with aggressive behaviour, depression and suicidal tendencies in later life.
The brain also develops in respon to other neurochemicals such as cortisol (stress hormone). Although normal levels of cortisol are needed for healthy functioning, touch deprived infants with con
形容词做状语sistently elevated levels may have difficulty in controlling their emotions and behaviour as they grow older. Oxytocin is another stress-regulating hormone relead by clo physical contact. High oxytocin levels in the parent and baby promote bonding patterns and the desire for social relationships. Oxytocin also interacts with dopamine, a brain chemical that has an important role in behaviour, learning, attention, motivation, attention and well-being.
In the abnce of touch stimulation, relea of important growth hormones may be inhibited in all parts of the body as well as the brain, liver and heart. Weight gain may also be affected by a reduction of food absorption hormones such as insulin.
力和机械Touch is good medicine. It triggers the relea of regulating hormones, which either stimulate or moderate respons, chemicals and enzymes that facilitate food absorption and growth, and immune cell activity that helps the body maintain its defence against pathogens.
Touch therapies
Many of the touch therapies that have been practid for thousands of years in cultures across the world are now gaining acceptance as intervention or therapeutic therapies. Massage for example, can produce positive benefits for babies with colic and constipation, respiratory and sleep problems.
It also stimulates nerves in the brain that aid digestion and is particularly beneficial for babies with feeding difficulties and sickness. Rearch shows that premature babies who are massaged regularly for at least 20 minutes gain weight daily and do better overall than tho who are not massaged. Tactile stimulation is particularly important for infants that avoid any form of physical contact: they are often the ones that need a loving touch the most.
The positive effects of massage have also been noted in children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), autism, Down syndrome, dermatitis, stress and immune function disorders and in adults with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Parkinson's dia and osteoarthritis. Indeed, children with behavioural problems who receive massage show more task orientated behaviour, less solitary play and less aggression. Babies with Down syndrome have improved muscle tone and show a better performance on motor tasks following regular massage. Children with autism also benefit from massage, probably becau it is predicable. Massage has an important emotional element for parents too becau it provides an opportunity for them to get involved in a warm and loving way with their baby. It also gives hope to parents who have been unable to bond with their babies in the early stages of life.
