Without their mothers licking them, baby rats showed decreased levels of growth hormones. Likewise for human babies. Studies have shown that touching can also lead to weight gain. Touch also decreases stress. While many parents of preemies are seeing the benefits of infant massage, the medical establishment isn't always quite as enthusiastic.
Many doctors stop short of prescribing massage to help babies grow or reduce their stress.
Touch research is still relatively new. Many questions remain unanswered. Yet more and more neonatal intensive care units are beginning to add touch to their therapy, and parental interest in infant massage continues to grow. So once again, science is catching up to the wisdom of a mother's intuition. Research now indicates that pregnancy may increase the risk of having autoimmune diseases because of a flux of fetal cells in the mother's bloodstream during delivery.