Why do people say new mothers must hold their child(ren) as soon as they are born to bond with their babies?

Question

Is that an old wives’ tale or is there some scientific basis?

In: Biology

Answer 1

There are a lot of hormones that are released when a mother holds a baby. Some of those help to start the mother’s milk producing which can be a reason it’s important to hold asap.

However anecdotally I held one child straight away and another I didn’t get to hold for 5 hours and the bigger issue for me was dealing with the post natal depression and the kid I did get to hold causing more issues with bonding…