8 Health Benefits of Acupressure for Your Baby

4 years ago Baby Destination Editor

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Acupressure is an ancient Chinese technique of applying pressure to certain points of the body to provide specific benefits – providing relief from or healing certain ailments. Acupressure is performed by applying gentle pressure primarily using your thumbs, palms, and fingers on specific pressure points on the body.

Acupressure is known to be an effective therapy and works well for both babies and adults. Acupressure is absolutely safe for babies, just the way massage are. However, for babies, the pressure applied to the pressure points should be very gentle, on the lines of gentle stroking rather than pressing.

8 Benefits of Acupressure for Babies

#1. Better Sleep

What if you could help your babies sleep better and faster by literally pressing their sleep buttons? Yes, the spot on the baby’s forehead between the eyebrows is the sleep spot. Gently stroking that spot on your baby’s forehead with your thumb or finger tips will help the baby relax. Just stroke the spot for a few minutes and watch your baby fall asleep without a fuss.

#2. Relief from Colic

Colicky babies are hard to handle. Apart from the fact that they are suffering because of gas buildup which makes them cranky, it is also difficult for parents to soothe them. Formula-fed babies are especially prone to colic. The remedy is surprisingly simple – gently massage in clockwise circles near the baby’s belly button. This helps clear trapped gas and provides relief from colic.

To Read More: Home Remedies To Relieve Gas In Newborns

#3. Relief from Constipation

Constipation in babies is common but painful. A constipated baby refuses to feed and is cranky which is a nightmare for parents to handle. To resolve constipation, gently tap your baby’s belly, about 1 inch out from the navel on either side. Repeat this about 10 times on each side. This allows any trapped gas to escape and also provides relief from constipation.

#4. Relief from Teething Pain

When babies start teething, sometimes as early as 6 months of age, they are in a lot of discomfort, pain and salivate excessively. They try to find relief by chewing on anything they can lay their hands on. You can help your baby by doing this simple acupressure massage.

The teething relief points are in the baby’s palms near his thumbs. You can press one or both of them with a gentle massaging motion for about 10 seconds every couple of hours. Massaging these acupressure points not only reduces pain in the gums but also reduces salivation.

#5. Reducing Cough:

As soon as babies start coughing we reach out for home remedies or the bottle of cough syrup. Next time you could try simple acupressure too. The acupressure pressure point for providing relief from cough and chest congestion in babies is located on the top of your baby’s index fingers just above the knuckles.

Just hold onto your baby’s index fingers, above the knuckles without exerting much pressure for about 5 seconds. Do this every time your baby has a bout of cough and watch the cough reduce.

#6. Reducing Nasal Congestion

Nasal congestion is common in babies and seems to occur with every turn of the season. Inflamed blood vessels in the nostrils are the root cause of nasal congestion. Gently massaging the nostrils and the area around the nostrils with your thumb and index fingertips can help provide the baby relief from nasal congestion.

#7. Alleviate body pain

Babies and toddlers can experience body pain which they cannot express. It could be because of falls when learning to walk or sit or while playing. Body pain makes babies irritable and makes it hard for them to fall asleep.

The pressure points to alleviate body pain are located on the bottom (pads) of the feet and on the palms. Gently pressing and massaging these points relaxes the baby and helps them sleep better too. You could gently press and massage these points during bath time or while giving them a massage.

#8. Reducing Fever

When babies have a fever, parents are ready to do anything to help them out. What if one of the things you could do was to simply hold their thumbs? Yes, the pressure point for fever-relief is located at the base of your baby’s thumbnail. Gently grasping your baby’s thumbs for 10 seconds every 2-3 hours when they are running a fever, will help bring down the fever.

Remember acupressure is a method of alternative medics and you cannot replace it with a doctor’s consultation or medicine with acupressure. In case of any serious health issues, you should consult your pediatrician immediately.

Acupressure can be performed in addition to the medication given by your child’s doctor. Also, complete the entire course of medication as suggested by the doctor.

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