Infant massage is a combination of Indian, Chinese and Swedish massage strokes. The strokes are close and rhythmic and every one of them has a special name. All children first encounter massage in the womb. Their skin is stimulated by the rhythmic contractions and relaxations of the uterus. The birth itself is also similar to a vigorous massage. It is a huge transition for the child to enter the world from the warm and safe womb and therefore infant massage gives it a sense of security. You can say that it is a way to soften this transition. Children are very sensitive, especially to stress. Massage releases tension and balances the body's nervous system. In addition, massage stimulates the blood flow and carries oxygen and vitamins to the brain and other body parts.

A wide range of research has shown that physical contact is very important to human beings and animals. Massage strengthens our sense of security. Massage, or simply the touch of another person, gives us a sense of love, warmth and goodwill. These feelings help us relax. Massage also contributes to bonding in a positive way. The child bonds with the person giving the massage, making it easier for it to express itself. Moreover, a secure and relaxing atmosphere is created during the massage. Massage increases a person's resistance to disease and can be conducive to emotional growth, which can not always be taken for granted. Several adults have intimacy issues and try to avoid physical contact with others.

Vonda K. Jump researched the effect of infant massage on the attachment security of infants. The sample consisted of 57 mothers who were randomly divided into two groups. The experimental group received training in infant massage and education regarding postnatal development whereas the control group only received the latter. Both groups had four sessions; each one lasted about an hour. The mothers answered a questionnaire before the seminar and then later when their children were 12 months old. The results showed that at the age of 12 months, the infants whose mothers massaged them more than once a week showed more attachment security than those whose mothers massaged them less. The infants in the experimental group also showed more attachment security than the infants in the control group. There was also a correlation between attachment security and gender, number of siblings and the age of the mothers.

Gilda Rios Bernal examined the effect of infant massage on Chilean infants who had shown negative emotional behavior. The infants who were massaged three times a week turned out to cry less, sleep and adjust better, relax more and have improved eating habits.

Cullen, Field, Escalona and Hartshorn researched the effect of fathers massaging their infants, in the ages of 3 - 14 months, every day for one month. It turned out that the fathers who had massaged their children expressed themselves more when they were around them and showed more pleasure and warmth when they were playing with them compared to fathers in the control group.

The weight, growth and sleeping habits of infants improve if they are massaged. According to researchers at the University of Miami School of Medicine (U.S.A.) premature babies who were massaged daily for a few months showed quicker progress than children in a control group who were not massaged.

Swedish masseuses, specialized in infant massage, have shown the incredible progress infant massage can bring out in disabled children.

The psychologist Ruth Rice (Dallas, U.S.A) researched the effect of infant massage on premature babies. The sample, a group of premature babies recently returned from the hospital, was divided into two groups. The mothers were instructed to care for their infants in an ordinary manner and the mothers in the experimental group were also asked to massage them on a daily basis. In four months time the children in the experimental group showed more progress and had gained weight quicker than the children in the control group.

Research in the motherly behaviour of several animals has shown that stimulation, such as licking the abdomen during pregnancy, can have a positive effect on both mother and offspring. When researchers placed collars around the necks of several species, to prevent them from licking themselves, it turned out that they were unable to develop the motherly behaviour that is essential for the lives of their offspring.

Mothers who suffer from postnatal depression often have problems communicating with their children. In a little study by Glover, Onozawa and Hodgkinson, a massage seminar helped such mothers to bond with their children. It is still not known why this is but it is thought to have something to do with the mothers learning to know the signals their children give them.

In a study that took place in the Dominican Republic on 2 - 8 year-old children who had been diagnosed with the HIV - virus, it was shown that if the children were massaged, they did better in a test that measures the strength of the immune system.

In 1975, the result of a research by Gail Ross showed that the more diapers changed by the fathers of infants, the closer the connection between child and father. This shows how important it is to touch your child and spend time with it.