The effectiveness of baby massage in increasing infant's body weight

The low birth weight (LBW) problem is found in various developing countries with an increasing trend of cases every year. This is caused by nutritional status and a history of maternal health. The impact of LBW in children is they are more likely to experience delayed growth and development. This study aims to identify the effect of baby massage on infants' body weight.

The research design used was quasi-experimental pre and post-test type with control group. There were 16 infants for each group selected by purposive sampling. Baby massage was given to the infants twice a week within four weeks, 10 to 15 min per session. Data analysis was used paired t-test and independent t-test.

The mean age of infants was 3.69 months for both group, the mean age at birth was 37.8 weeks (intervention) and 38 weeks (control), the mean birth weight of infants was 2,295 grams (intervention) and 2,288 grams (control). Most of the infants was male for both group. There was an effect of baby massage on the increase in infants' weight gain with a history of low birth weight significantly with a p value <0.05.

Baby massage can increase infants' weight with a history of low birth weight aged 1-6 months. The role of health workers is to provide education and practice baby massage for mothers in order to stimulate the growth and development of infants. This intervention can be integrated with maternal and child health programs in primary health care facilities.