Sleep Basics
 
 
 
Quick Links
Helping your baby tips
 
 

As a new parent, you may be surprised to learn that your newborn, who seems to need you every minute of the day, actually sleeps about 16 hours or more!

Babies need to sleep for physical growth and to allow their immune systems    to develop effectively.

1. In the first few weeks, babies will show signs they are ready for sleep after every 1-1.5 hours of being awake. Newborns typically sleep for periods of 3-4 hours. Don't expect your baby to sleep through the night - the digestive system of babies is so small that they need nourishment every few hours and should be awakened if they haven't been fed for 5 hours (or more frequently if your doctor is concerned about weight gain).
2. Babies up to 3 months old require on average of 16-18 hours of sleep in a 24-hour period. This time is made up of sleep that can last from 20 minutes up to 5 hours. When can you expect your baby to sleep through the night? Many babies sleep through the night (between 6-8 hours) at 3 months of age, but if yours doesn't, it's not a cause for concern.
3. Like adults, babies must develop their own sleep patterns and cycles, so if your newborn is gaining weight and appears healthy, don't despair if he or she hasn't slept through the night at 3 months.

 tips to Help your baby to Sleep better

Babies need to learn how to settle and resettle themselves to sleep. This means simply falling asleep on their own without any assistance from an adult.

1. Fixed Routine: Provide a predictable pre-bed routine (Feed-Play-Sleep).
2. On the back: To reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), it is important to place babies on their backs when putting to them sleep. The peak age for SIDS is between four and sixteen weeks.
3. Clutter-free for safety: Remove all fluffy bedding, quilts, stuffed animals, and pillows from the sleeping area or crib to ensure that your baby doesn't get tangled in them or suffocate. Blankets are not bad, per se, but can easily contribute to an overly constricted, over-bundled child. If a child is comfortable and warm enough in sleepwear alone, consider not using a blanket. If parents do choose to use a blanket for their sleeping child, the fabric should be thin, tucked into the mattress at the foot of the crib, and should come up only to a baby's chest. It should never cover the baby's head. Children can experience separation anxiety as their parents leave them to go to sleep in their toddler years. In this situation a toy or stuffed animal, as long as it is at a safe distance, can be the transitional object that a child uses to soothe himself in the absence of his parents.
4. Side to side: Be sure to alternate the position of your baby's head from night to night (first right, then left, and so on) to prevent the development of a flat spot on one side of the head.
5. Consistent environment: The ideal area to sleep is dark and has a steady, slightly cool temperature. Don’t deliberately keep things quiet when the baby is sleeping. Get them used to noise, and sleeping through it.
6. Feeding-time and bed-time: After three to four months of age, when a child can sleep for 6-8 hours at night, it becomes important to slowly teach a child not to rely on a bottle or the breast to fall asleep.