Breastfeeding in the first hour of birth: Science and skills

Abstract

Immediate and uninterrupted skin-to-skin contact between mother and newborn should be facilitated soon after birth to initiate breastfeeding. It initiates the newborn infant’s internal process to go through nine instinctive steps (namely, crying, relaxation, awakening, activity, resting, crawling, familiarization, suckling, and sleeping). Skin-to-skin contact with the mother soon after birth contributes to an early coordination of five senses in the newborn, namely, sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. The oxytocin surge in the 1st h of birth makes mother to keep the infant close to her chest and also establishes chemical connection between the two. The colostrum odor increases the amount of oxygenated hemoglobin over the olfactory cortex in the newborn within 24 h of life. The skin-to-skin provides the initial colonization of the baby’s microbiome outside the mother. Finally, skin-to-skin contact not only improves the bonding between mother and the infant but also influences infant’s self-regulation in the years to come.