Comforting a baby

Touch is one of a baby's most highly developed senses at birth, so holding, caressing and cuddling your baby is crucial to helping her feel safe and secure. Rubbing and stroking a baby's skin sends messages to her brain to increase levels of beneficial hormones and chemicals.

Another activity that comforts babies is sucking and, because babies get satisfaction from oral stimulation, sucking calms them and can relieve discomfort.

Repetitive, rhythmic movements such as rocking also comfort babies, perhaps because of their need for predictability – knowing what comes next, knowing that a swing back follows a swing forward. Babies also like rhythmic, repetitive sounds that remind them of the noises they heard in the womb: a ticking clock, a whirring fan, sounds of the ocean. They also like slow, lilting music and lullabies.

Here are things babies do not like:

Abrupt changes in volume such as a balloon popping, a door slamming or loud voices
Irregular movements or sounds
Abrupt changes in environment; for example, when the child is playing on the floor and someone comes up from behind, picks up the baby and goes somewhere else
Bitter and very sour tastes
Over-stimulation