Sam Liptrot 💙

Skin to skin contact does more than comfort your little one after birth - it triggers the release of Oxytocin, also known as “the love hormone” in both parent and child. Manufactured in the brain’s hypothalamus and stored and released by the pituitary gland, Oxytocin is biology’s own version of Cupid’s arrow, promoting love, affection and caregiving behaviors in new parents. The hormone is also critical to the birthing process, triggering uterine contractions and the let down of milk in preparation for baby’s first feedings. While once common for hospitals to whisk baby away at birth for cleaning and a battery of newborn assessments, many are now modifying their processes to prioritize skin to skin contact - and bonding - letting the Oxytocin flow during what has come to be known as the “golden hour.” (The first 60 minutes of life.) This lovely example was shared to IG by cnn.babies.