Skin-to-skin care is widely recommended by major health and family organizations, including WHO, Unicef and Save the Children. While the benefits apply to all babies, practicing skin-to-skin will have a particularly stabilizing effect on preterm or low birthweight babies, who are often more vulnerable to experiencing hypothermia or catching infections.
Recent research conducted by WHO and published in EClinicalMedicine shows that skin-to-skin, or ‘kangaroo care’, can reduce infant deaths by as much as 40%, hypothermia by more than 70%, and severe infections by almost two-thirds.
How the Joeyband™ Works
Holding your baby in the first few days and weeks of their life can be intimidating, especially if it’s your first. In fact, our company co-founder Hayley Mullins experienced her own newborn falling off her chest while doing skin-to-skin. This catalysed the launch of the Joeyband™ to help prevent other families going through the same thing.
Made from Nylon Spandex and fastened with an industrial strength velcro hook and loop closure, the Joeyband™ is designed to safely ease the transition from womb to world, removing some of the anxiety that affects both parent and baby as they get used to their new realities.
Now used on over 100,000 newborns, the Joeyband™ is the only skin-to-skin product that can be used in all hospital care settings and at home, helping new families to maximize on the benefits of skin-to-skin care. Our aim is to protect babies during their first few weeks of life, and improve their quality of life during the fourth trimester.
The Importance of Skin-to-Skin from NICU Parents Who Know
The Joeyband’s easy-to-use, adjustable design makes it accessible to parents and babies of all sizes, and is used in NICUs in some of the world’s leading hospitals.
When Ashleigh, a preemie mom to twin girls, found herself in the NICU for seven long weeks, she said the Joeyband gave her the confidence she needed to hold her babies, and enjoy a bit of hands-free time, too.
“The Joeyband™ allowed me to hold both fragile newborns at the same time, while being hands-free to get stuff done on the computer or tablet. It allowed me to safely give the twins an incredible amount of skin to skin time, which was a big priority in the NICU!
“Wearing the Joeyband™ grew my confidence in holding and cuddling the twins and being able to go home with that little bit of confidence was really important. I think the Joeyband™ should be part of everyone's hospital bag, preemie birth or not.
“Kangaroo care is an incredibly important aspect of the NICU and helping newborn preemies thrive and survive!”
Read more about Ashleigh’s journey here, or on her blog.
Be sure to let your practitioners know that you want to be skin-to-skin with the baby after birth. You can do this by having conversations with your practitioner, and including it in your birth plan.
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