When a baby is born prematurely, both professionals and parents have the mission of trying to offer conditions as similar as possible to those inside the womb, to avoid hyperstimulation that makes them more nervous and can affect their correctness. developing.
That is why the kangaroo mother method has been recommended for many years (having the baby skin with skin the longer the better), and therefore some neonatal units they are asking people to make crochet octopus, when they are in the incubator or in their cribs.
Returning them "the umbilical cord"
It is known, by the numerous ultrasounds done to babies, that during pregnancy there are many occasions when they bump into the umbilical cord, touch it and even hold it between their fingers. When they are born premature, they must say goodbye to their cord too soon, so putting a crochet octopus with its eight legs is just a way to give it a cord again to cling to at times.
As we read in Hello Giggles, a NICU nurse from the Poole Hospital in Dorset, UK, suggested the idea and they have seen that when they are next, premature babies cling to the legs as if it were their cord, feeling (in theory) still connected in some way to something greater that protects them.
An initiative that is not new
Although for many people it is unknown, there are initiatives such as Spruttegruppen, in Denmark, which have managed the collection and delivery of crochet octopus since 2013. In the years they have been active they have delivered to various hospitals more than 21 thousand octopuses made by volunteers.
You can even see on the page a ranking with the number of octopuses delivered each year to each hospital, and they have manuals and instructions so that whoever wants to, can also do them, since The length of the octopus legs is limited to 8.6 inches (21.84 cm) To avoid possible risks.
Great, as long as I don't replace mom and dad's arms
It is possible that having an octopus on the side, and being able to hold on to the legs reminds them a little, at least a little, of the time they were in the womb, and that it is beneficial for them. However, there is nothing more beneficial and I can remind mom that mom's chest, skin to skin; or failing that, dad's.
If octopuses aim to be a complement to the mother kangaroo method, welcome. If instead they cause a false sense of security in the parents, who feel that this is already enough for them to be calm and have better development, it is better to explain clearly that they can be helpful for specific moments, but that the most important thing for the baby and for the parents is that they spend together the longer the better.
Let's not forget that we talk about premature babies and that they need more care, more attention, and a little more expert parents in all this, and more reactive to the demands of the baby.
Photos | Spruttegruppen, Hello Giggles, iStock
In Babies and more | When your baby is born premature and nothing is as you expected, what is the Mother Kangaroo Program ?, Why all parents should practice the Kangaroo Method with their babies
