How Does Baby’s Sleep Change? – Being Parents

Babies’ sleep changes as they grow older. If a child lacks sleep, it affects their physical and mental health, as well as the rest of the family.

As parents, we certainly remember the first nights of sleep that was constantly interrupted to feed our child, and sure enough we would all have liked to have had a good night’s sleep, but the way babies and children sleep is different when they are. grow up.

How does this change occur in infant sleep? How many hours should babies and children sleep? We will answer these questions in the following lines.

Babies’ sleep changes as they grow

To begin with, we have to say that sleep is evolutionary, that is, it changes with the age of the child. Babies, 0-4 months old, need to learn to sleep, which is why a 3 month old baby cannot sleep the same as a 7 year old. Each of them has different needs and therefore their sleep cannot be the same either.

Circadian rhythms are responsible for controlling sleep ; they indicate how much of the hormone that relaxes us (melatonin) and the stress hormone (cortisol) we need to secrete. These rhythms are regulated by the alternation of day and night, and are also essential for cell regeneration, brain activity, among others.

In babies under 4 months old, circadian rhythms are not yet working, as they are regulated by sunlight and still cannot distinguish day from night. So they don’t have a sleep pattern to help them sleep, as these will develop later.

How do babies sleep during their first months?

Babies 0-4 months fall asleep and wake up based on other needs, such as hungry, thirsty, or uncomfortable. So their sleep cycles usually last 40 or 50 minutes.

It is from 4 months that sleep begins to follow circadian rhythms and goes through five phases of sleep: one REM phase and four Non-REM phases. Today, their cycles can last from 90 to 120 minutes.

This is when we need to establish the sleep patterns we want to teach them. From this point on, the daily hours of sleep a child needs will gradually decrease as he grows older.

How many hours should a child sleep based on their age?

It happens to us adults that when a child does not sleep the necessary time, he feels more irritable, he lacks concentration and his performance in any task he performs will be reduced.

So, as parents, we can ask ourselves how many hours of sleep children need as they grow older. We will therefore attempt to answer this question by reviewing the information provided by the American Pediatric Association .

Newborn’s sleep

Newborns need many hours of sleep a day because they still have a lot of development to do. This means that they can sleep 7 hours or more, both day and night.

Babies’ sleep between 4 and 12 months

At this age, babies need 12 to 16 hours of sleep per day.

• From 4-5 months, 4 hours of sleep during the day (divided into 3 naps).
• From 6 months, 3 hours during the day, (2 naps per day).

Sleep for babies 1 to 2 years old

When counting naps, babies 1 to 2 years old need 11 to 14 hours of sleep. At this age, the number of naps is reduced to one per day, which means that they would need 1.5 to 2 hours of sleep during the day.

3 to 5 years old

Children aged 3 to 5 need 10 to 13 hours of sleep and take a daily nap.

From 6 to 12 years

At these ages, sleep is reduced by 9 to 12 hours per day, depending on the child.

During teenagehood

Adolescents need 8-10 hours of sleep per day. Although at this age it is more complicated to control our children’s sleep time, it is important that we explain to them the need and importance of sleep for their physical and mental health.

Tips to improve children’s sleep

In order for children to get good rest, it is important to establish sleep patterns, which should be done from 4 months, because this is when sleep begins to be regulated. Here are some tips to help your children sleep better.

Establish bedtime rituals

If we repeat the same routine before putting the children to bed, they will start to relax and get ready for sleep. An example of a routine would be taking a bath before dinner, eating dinner, reading a story, and falling asleep.

Schedule setting

It is important. We need to get children used to going to bed and waking up at the same time. This will also help them get the amount of sleep they need for their age.

Do not use TV, tablet or cell phone before bedtime

The light from the screens activates the brains of children and prevents them from relaxing, so we have to avoid them in any way, and we can instead talk as a family or read a book.

Have a room with adequate sleeping conditions

The bedroom should have adequate sleeping conditions, such as correct temperature, good ventilation, adequate humidity (especially if we have heating), absence of noise, etc.

In short, as you have seen, babies’ sleep changes as they grow older, as their needs are different as they get older.

These tips can help you establish the correct sleep pattern for your children. You know how important it is for children to get the sleep they need for good physical and mental health, so let’s all sleep!