True or False: Skin-to-skin contact immediately after birth is discouraged.

True or False: Skin-to-skin contact immediately after birth is discouraged.

• A. Not specified
• B. Only after first week
• C. False
• D. True

Answer: (C)

Immediate skin-to-skin contact after birth is encouraged, not discouraged. When a newborn is placed on the parent’s chest right away, it helps regulate the baby’s temperature, breathing, and heart rate, supports stable glucose levels, and most importantly kick-starts breastfeeding by signaling the baby to latch and by boosting maternal oxytocin. This bonding time also tends to reduce crying and promotes a strong mother–infant connection. So saying it should be discouraged goes against evidence-based practice. There are rare situations where it might be postponed briefly if the baby needs urgent medical care or the parent is unstable, but the standard approach is to do skin-to-skin as soon as possible whenever safely feasible.

Immediate skin-to-skin contact after birth is encouraged, not discouraged. When a newborn is placed on the parent’s chest right away, it helps regulate the baby’s temperature, breathing, and heart rate, supports stable glucose levels, and most importantly kick-starts breastfeeding by signaling the baby to latch and by boosting maternal oxytocin. This bonding time also tends to reduce crying and promotes a strong mother–infant connection. So saying it should be discouraged goes against evidence-based practice. There are rare situations where it might be postponed briefly if the baby needs urgent medical care or the parent is unstable, but the standard approach is to do skin-to-skin as soon as possible whenever safely feasible.