Mothers only need to get it right 50% of the time for their babies to become ...

'You don't have to be perfect, you just have to be good enough': Mothers only need to get it right 50% of the time for their babies to become attached Researchers looked at how mothers responded to their crying infants Responding quickly was not a good predictor of secure attachment, the bond that allows babies to feel safe and comforted But secure base provision, the degree to which mothers responded - such as soothing the infant until he or she stopped crying - was a good predictor Mothers only need to respond around 50 percent of the time for babies to form the attachment 

By Mary Kekatos Health Reporter For Dailymail.com

Published: 21:05 BST, 9 May 2019 | Updated: 21:05 BST, 9 May 2019

View
comments

Parents only need to 'get it right' 50 percent of the time for their babies to become attached, a new study claims.

Past research has suggested that mothers need to respond to their crying infants as soon as possible to make them form what is known a 'secure attachment'.

But researchers say it's not how quickly the mother responds to her baby that matters, but rather the degree to which she responds, meaning that she soothes the baby chest-to-chest until he or she is calm.

Furthermore, holding the crying baby until fully soothed, even just half the time, was 'good enough'. 

The team, led by Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, says the findings are beneficial for parents of low socioeconomic status who often struggle to balance between providing for their family and raising a child.

A new study from Lehigh University has found that it is not how quickly a mother responds to her infant but the degree to which she does that helps the baby form a 'secure attachment' (file image)

A new study from Lehigh University has found that it is not how quickly a mother responds to her infant but the degree to which she does that helps the baby form a 'secure attachment' (file image)

Secure infant attachment is the bond that allows babies to feel safe and

read more from dailymail.....

PREV The great sweetener myth! Sugar replacements like aspartame and sucralose DON'T ... trends now
NEXT Health service initiative offers patients a chance to see a GP on the same day ... trends now