In the wake of new research linking Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) to abnormalities in the brains of babies, the International Association of Infant Massage, Australia (IAIM) has released an urgent call for further exploration into the role of touch in infant brain development.  

Breakthrough research, conducted at Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, found that babies who died of SIDS had fewer Serotonin receptors in their brain stems than babies who died from other causes.   Associate Professor Graham Reynolds, Director of Paediatric Research at The Canberra Hospital and Patron of the IAIM said that “Serotonin is a brain chemical involved in the regulation of mood and behaviour. Scientists have known for a long time that touch and skin-to-skin contact is an essential trigger for the healthy development of the Serotonin pathways in the brains of babies”.   In the past, research has focused on reduced availability of Serotonin, and how this influences the development of depression and violence. “There are numerous studies that show being massaged by a parent not only increases Serotonin availability in a baby’s brain, but that massage also reduces the baby’s chance of developing depression, violent behaviours or other mental health difficulties later in life” said Assoc. Prof. Reynolds.   Other benefits of Infant Massage that have been identified by scientific research include improved sleep patterns, less crying, reduced rates of child abuse and neglect, stronger social skills, and improved physical development. “We now also have new evidence suggesting that mothers who learn to massage their babies recover more quickly from post-natal depression than mothers who receive more traditional forms of treatment.

Overseas hospitals are leading the way in this area by offering Infant Massage classes for all new parents. As well as being much cheaper, this has huge implications for children because even mild post-natal depression is known to have a detrimental impact on a baby’s long-term speech, social and physical development” said Associate Prof. Reynolds.  

However, the benefits of Infant Massage are not well known in the Australian community according to the President of the IAIM, and Registered Nurse, Alice Campbell. “Infant Massage in Australia is more likely to be seen as a ‘new age’ activity and this has prevented previous Australian governments from ensuring Infant Massage classes are widely accessible to new families” Ms. Campbell said.   But the IAIM hopes that the Boston study will bring about some changes. Ms. Campbell said “We have this completely crazy situation at the moment where millions of dollars are spent on violence prevention programs and punishment of offenders – but virtually no money is spent on addressing the single greatest cause of violent behaviour, which is the lack of nurturing touch during infancy. We don’t want to see the same problem happen with SIDS, and for more babies to die just because the potential importance of teaching parents the simple skill of infant massage is overlooked. The scientific evidence for a link between skin-to-skin contact and increased availability of Serotonin is so well established”, Ms. Campbell emphasised “that we hope the Boston Study will encourage researchers and governments to seriously investigate whether parents who learn and use Infant Massage can help protect their baby from SIDS”.   Until further research is undertaken, both Assoc. Prof. Reynolds and Ms. Campbell clarified that there is currently no direct evidence that links Infant Massage to reduced risk of SIDS.

However, this shouldn’t discourage parents from learning infant massage with a Certified Infant Massage Instructor. “The other benefits of infant massage are so well-documented in the scientific research that there is every reason for parents to learn the basics of infant massage.”   Assoc. Prof. Reynolds advises parents to learn infant massage from an Instructor who has current certification with International Association of Infant Massage. “Many parents who try and learn from a book or an unqualified instructor simply give up because every baby has such individual needs when it comes to being touched. There is much more to an infant massage class than simply learning massage strokes. IAIM Instructors are properly trained to help parents recognise and respond to their own baby’s unique cues and signals. This support from a Certified Instructor is important for all families in using touch, including for those babies who don’t respond well to being touched or who have additional needs.” 

written by the President of the IAIM, and Registered Nurse, Alice Campbell