Infant massage course held

An introductory child massage course will be held at Ettalong Baptist Church on February 5 from 10am to noon

The course will be run by Empire Bay resident Glenda Chapman for the Nursing Mothers Association.

Ms Chapman, a certified infant massage therapist, said she became involved in infant massage after realising the benefits of touch.

"I know the benefits of touch and felt it was a shame that people weren't experiencing it at an earlier age," she said.

"People were coming to me in mid-life with aches and pains, and the attitude was that massage was only needed if you have something wrong with you."

Ms Chapman took up infant massage in 1983.

"It hasn't been a very popular in Australia.

"It's not an area where you make a lot of money," she said.

"But now parents are realising the positive nurturing of touch."

She has three children and four grandchildren.

"They were all well massaged babies and now massage each other," she said.

She said infant massage was an ancient tradition in many cultures throughout the world, and had been recently recognised for its physical and emotional benefits to families.

"Clinical research has demonstrated that loving, nurturing touch has a lasting positive impact on baby's emotional and physical wellbeing," Ms Chapman said.

"Parents report increased feelings of confidence in caring for their baby as a result of infant massage. "Infant massage is used successfully with premature, developmentally-challenged, pre-natal drug-exposed or HIV positive infants, as well as with foster and adoptive parents, teen parents, homeless families and women in recovery."

Press release, Alison Branley, January 21