There’s nothing I love more than hugging Little L. The way he cuddles up against my skin, wraps his chubby arms around me and nuzzles his head close to mine… The feeling is inexplicable. For those few minutes nothing else matters. So, needless to say, we hug a lot (even when he was in my belly). But it turns out, I’m not the only one who benefits from our hug sessions: there are more than 600 medical studies that show the importance and healing benefits of skin-to-skin hugs for babies!
Benefits like helping baby’s brain development, lowering response to pain, improving social skills, stabilizing heart rate and oxygen levels — the list goes on and is outlined in The Power of Human Touch for Babies. These are some of the reasons why nurses, doctors and hospitals are placing more importance on hugging than ever before. But sadly, due to a range of circumstances, not all parents can give baby the hugs he/she needs — this is particularly true for some newborns in neonatal intensive care units (NICU). To address this need, Huggies funds volunteer hugging programs in Canadian hospitals via their No Baby Unhugged initiative…
Photo c/o Huggies.
Yup, through a partnership with the Canadian Association of Paediatric Health Centres (CAPHC), Huggies is helping give newborns some much-needed physical human interaction via hugs from incredible volunteers. These specially-trained volunteers hug, rock and sing to newborns in the neonatal and paediatric intensive care units so they don’t miss out on the psychological and physiological benefits of stimulation during a critical period of their treatment plan. Amazing, right?!
Photo c/o Huggies.
To date, Huggies has provided $100,000 in grants to initiate and support four baby hugging programs in Canadian hospitals (Victoria General Hospital, Cape Breton Regional Hospital, Southlake Regional Health Centre and the newest addition: Nanaimo Regional General Hospital). The NICUs and PICUs at these hospitals help approximately 500 babies each year via their baby hugging programs. I really really REALLY hope we get one in Toronto one day so I can volunteer — it may just be the best volunteer job on the planet…
In the meantime, I’m proud to support the program as a Huggies brand ambassador and encourage you to pledge YOUR support here. Bonus: when you sign up you’ll receive a free pack of Huggies Little Snugglers diapers and Natural Care Wipes AND Huggies will donate $5 to the No Baby Unhugged initiative. Let’s all do our part to make sure all babies get the hugs they need.
This post was sponsored by Huggies® Canada as part of my partnership with them as a #NoBabyUnhugged Mom. As always, all reviews and opinions are my own. If you’re a mom or dad-to-be, I highly encourage you and your partner to visit nobabyunhugged.ca to download the Hug Plan for free to ensure your baby receives hugs as soon as he/she is born!
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