Study: 'Kangaroo Care' Can Reduce Death Rates, Promote Heath In Premature Babies

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A new study finds that skin-to-skin contact between mothers and pre-mature babies with low birth weights may help foster growth and lower death rates in newborns.

Twins Declan Petter and Carolyn Margaret, only a week old, were born six weeks early. Their mother, Sharon Butler, keeps them calm using the age-old practice of skin-to-skin treatment, also called "kangaroo care."

"And I have to tell you it's the most amazing feeling and the babies are so calm as soon as you do it," Butler said.

A recent study by the journal Pediatrics analyzed 124 studies on kangaroo care and found that the practice helped regulate breathing, body temperature and heart rate in low birth weight babies, CBS2's Dr. Max Gomez reported. The study also showed that kangaroo care also reduced infections, promoted growth and reduced death rates among newborns.

"It provides physiologic stability to the baby," Dr. Richard Schanler, Chief of Neonatology at Cohen Children's Hospital at North Shore-LIJ Medical Center, said. "Their heart rates stabilize, their breathing patterns stabilize."

Another study found the practice can also be beneficial in reducing stress levels in new mothers.

Some fathers, like Dave Butler also feel the effects.

"Very calming, you look a the monitor, her heart rate went down," Butler said. "You just feel the bond between the two of us."

According to Dr. Schanler, pretty much every baby -- even those in the neonatal ICU -- can be held skin-to-skin and will benefit from it.

The mother-child bonding that takes place with kangaroo care also improves breast feeding and even the baby's immunity -- all with virtually no cost or downside.