Cradling baby on right a sure sign of stress
Most mothers feel under pressure in the early days of their baby’s life but the way, they hold their infant, may indicate they are at risk of becoming depressed.
About 80% of women cradle their babies on the left side of their body, a position that probably evolved because it placed the infant over the mother’s heart.
Researchers in Durham University in Britain studied 79 new mothers and their babies aged at about seven months.
The mothers were asked to pick up their babies and cradle them. The women were also quizzed on their mental states.
The study, published in the online version of the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, also established that there was no link between the side the baby was cradled and whether the mother was left or right handed.
Of the mothers who expressed no signs of stress or depression, 86% preferred to hold their babies to the left.
Cradling babies to the right was more prominent among stressed mums with 32% showing a right-sided bias.
At least one in 10 women develop post-natal depression and studying non-verbal clues, such as baby cradling, could help doctors and public health nurses identify those mothers needing extra professional help.
Author of the study Dr Nadja Reissland, a senior lecturer with Durham University’s department of psychology, said early detection of stress in mothers was vital. “Many mothers don’t realise they are suffering from stress or don’t want to admit they are. The way they interact with their child is usually the best indicator of their inner mental state,” she said.
Child clinical psychologist and RollerCoaster.ie founder Anne O’Connor, said that post-natal depression, while very common, often went undetected.
The British research team is following up their study with one looking at the cradling side preferred by mothers, before and after taking their babies for their first vaccinations.
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