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I don’t massage my baby as often as i should, but when i do massage him, boy he loves it. I was reading on Doctoroz.com the benefits of massaging a baby and i have made a mental note to massage my baby daily. 

Benefits of massaging baby:

  • Helps  mom and dad bond with the baby
  •  Massage helps baby deal with stress
  •  Improves his immune function and stimulates the brain  for food absorption
  • Neurological development
  • Helps baby sleep well.

What you need:
A soft towel to lay baby on ,  oil, and you to talk to the baby and massage him.

How to massage baby:

  • Rub some oil on your hands and pour some drops on the baby’s thighs and legs. Wrap your hands on the thighs and move your hands down one after another , as if you are ” milking” her legs. Swith both legs and repeat .
  • Move to the feet. Take one foot at a time, rotating gently, making little circles on the bottom of the foot then finish off with pulling on the little toes, one after another between your fingers and repeat on all ten toes. Switch feet and repeat.
  • Progress to the arms  be sure to keep your hands oily so they can slide smoothly on the baby skin. Gently pull on the baby’s  hands one at a time , repeat the “milking ” motion move all the way from the armpits to the wrist. Pull on gently on the fingers and  gently rotate the wrists from each direction. Rub the palms with your thumb tracing little circles.
  • Move on to the chest. I usually put a few drops of oil on the chest and start moving my hands on an outward motion. Repeat several times and then move all the way down to the thighs and legs. Repeat several times, then turn the baby on his tummy.
  • Pour a couple of drops on the back,  stroke the baby’s back gently. Use your fingertips and work  on massaging gently on baby’s back  from the neck down to the butt. Trace some tiny circles with your fingers on either side of the spine . Massage the shoulders all the way to the feet.  Repeat several times, and baby should be ready for his diaper back and feeding if need be, and will probably sleep by now :)

I guess what is good for mom and dad, is surely good for the baby too. Have fun massaging that little one!

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