It is possible to create receptivity to oxytocin during sensitive periods of life. A baby is particularly sensitive to neural development during pregnancy, before and after birth and in early childhood. By increasing loving social interactions we prime our babies and children to behave in loving and co-operative ways.
Dr Beatriz Manrique and her team working in poor ghettos of Caracus, Venezuela, demonstrated that when parents are taught to communicate with their preborn children from early in womb life (ideally from conception), their physical, intellectual and emotional development is favoured.
Kangaroo Mother Care is the skin to skin attachment of the baby to the mother’s chest after birth to optimize the baby’s physiological growth and safety after birth