It is midafternoon in this realm of babies who just couldn't wait. When compared with preemies raised in incubators, a study from Zimbabwe showed, kangaroo-care infants gained weight twice as quickly, were able to leave the hospital sooner, and had fewer deaths. Other studies show that babies under this kind of care have improved breathing and heartbeats. Kangaroo care leapt into the United States in the late 1980s. She held it between her breasts, skin against skin, with a towel over the infant to hold in the heat.
Premature babies are born without much fat, so they use a lot of energy staying warm.
But warmed by another body instead, babies put that energy toward gaining weight and developing stronger lungs. Anderson and her colleagues saw a place for the method in the United States, with smaller and more fragile babies. Riley is one of them. They told us she had a 50-50 chance of survival. When we saw her, she was on a ventilator and there were IVs and wires sticking out of her.