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As parents, you want nothing but the best for your little one, and the same holds true when it comes to choosing a massage oil for your baby. A massage is vital for growing babies because improves their blood circulation. Above all, babies love the feel of their mother’s soft hand strokes on their body, and it is also a bonding exercise. There are many massage oils for babies to choose from, such as olive, coconut, almond, mustard and so on.
Amazing Benefits of Mustard Oil For Massaging Babies
Mustard oil has been used to massage babies for a long time, and many mothers swear by its immense benefits for babies and young children. Following are some amazing benefits of mustard oil for massaging babies:
1. Improves Blood Circulation
Mustard oil works wonders in improving blood circulation and the overall health of your baby. Regular massages with mustard oil will make your baby healthy and strong.
2. Helps in Storing Body Heat
Mustard oil is very effective in keeping the body warm and helps its retain heat. For this very reason, mustard oil is highly popular in colder regions to keep babies warm and cosy.
4. Works as a Great Decongestant
Mustard oil works as a decongestant for babies. If mustard oil is heated with few pods of garlic and applied on the baby’s chest, it can ward off a cough and cold in babies to a certain extent. Alternatively, you can also add basil leaves to get the same effect.
5. Helps in Fighting Skin-Infections
Mustard oil has anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties, and massaging your baby with this wondrous oil reduces your baby’s chances of having any skin infections. Babies have sensitive skin and, thus, are more prone to skin infections, and mustard oil massage helps in warding off many kinds of skin infections in babies.
6. Improves Hair Growth
Mustard oil is very effective in improving your baby’s hair growth. Babies have very scanty hair on their scalp, and regular head massages with mustard oil ensure good hair growth.
7. Works as an Effective Mosquito and Insect Repellent
Babies are at the constant threat of being bitten by insects and mosquitoes, especially during summer and rainy seasons. A massage with mustard oil may help in keeping the insects and mosquitoes away from your baby because of its strong and pungent smell.
9. Effective Anti-Bacterial Properties
Mustard oil is loaded with anti-bacterial properties and, thus, is very beneficial in reducing skin infections in babies.
10. Effective Anti-Fungal Properties
Fungal infections of any kind can be the cause of serious complications in babies. Massaging your baby with mustard oil helps in protecting your baby against various fungal infections.
The above-mentioned points are just some of the many benefits of massaging your baby with mustard oil. Consult your paediatrician before starting mustard oil massage for your baby because mustard oil may not suit all babies.
How to Massage Your Infant With Mustard Oil
Mustard oil has been in use to massage infants and babies for centuries. Mustard oil has immense therapeutic effects for your baby. Here’s how you can massage your baby with mustard oil:
- Take the required quantity of mustard oil and warm it up to extract maximum benefits from it. You can heat the mustard oil to a boiling point, too, as this makes it smoother and less stickier. However, make sure you cool the oil to room temperature before massaging your baby with it.
- You can heat mustard oil with some cloves of garlic.
- You can heat a spoonful of ajwain seeds with mustard oil for your baby’s massage.
- During winters, you can take a few leaves of basil and heat them up with the mustard oil for a warm, cosy massage for your baby.
Are There Risks of Using Mustard Oil for Your Baby’s Massage?
Everything has pros and cons associated with it, and the same goes for mustard oil. If you wish to know about various risks associated with using mustard oil for a baby massage. Here are some of them:
1. It May Cause Allergic Reaction
Mustard oil is strong, and it may cause an allergic reaction on the sensitive skin of babies. It may cause a rash, redness or in some cases, hives too. It is recommended to talk to your doctor before using mustard oil for your baby’s massage.
2. Not Good For Sensitive Skin
Though most babies have soft and sensitive skin, some babies have more sensitive skin than others, and massaging such babies with mustard oil may cause various skin allergies and reactions. Abstain from using mustard oil for massaging your baby, in case he has hypersensitive skin.
3. May Block the Skin Pores
Mustard oil is very thick and sticky as compared to other oils and massaging your baby with may lead to clogged skin pores. Therefore, do not use too much oil for massaging your baby. Also, it is recommended to give your baby a nice warm bath after massaging him with mustard oil to get rid of all the stickiness.
Mustard oil is very safe and has many health benefits for your baby. However, babies are delicate, and you, as parents, do not want to do anything wrong for your baby. Although the benefits are plenty, if you wish to use mustard oil for massaging your little one, make sure to consult a doctor first.
