Ask any parent and they can tell you that newborns have the strangest sleep patterns of any human on the planet.
That’s because up until birth, babies have spent their entire life in the womb, in total darkness. So they’re born without a sense of night or daytime. Instead, what drives their sleeping cycles is their grumbling tummies.
Turns out, eating “is extremely tiring for them, which is why they sleep to rest and recover,” says Hanjan Harbhajan, a pediatrician with Emanate Health.
Here’s what you need to know about how much sleep newborns need.
Newborn babies sleep more hours than they’re awake.
“In the first week of life, newborns sleep 16 to 17 hours per day,” says Dhanya Puram Limaye, a primary care physician at Erie Family Health Center and faculty member at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine.
Of course, there’s some variation and some babies will sleep more than others, Limaye says. However, one thing is consistent: No newborn is going to sleep through the night. A newborn will wake up every one to three hours to eat.
In fact, babies have a shorter sleep cycle. “They spend much less time in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, or dream sleep, compared to adults,” says Harbhajan.
As babies mature, so will their sleeping pattern. They’ll start to sleep for longer stretches through the night and need fewer hours of sleep during the day. Below is a guide of what to expect for the first six months.
Remember that each baby is different. And while many will start to sleep through the night by six months of age, an estimated 20% to 30% will continue to wake up periodically in the night for up to two years after birth.
“Newborns need more sleep than children, teens, and adults in order to support their rapid mental and physical development,” Harbhajan says.
In fact, you can’t see it, but babies are producing billions of neurons in their brains, which will eventually go on to produce roughly 100 trillion neural connections by adulthood.
This would help explain why a 2017 review of 30 studies, published in Nature and Science of Sleep, found a critical connection between sleep during infancy and both cognitive development and physical growth.
If you’re worried about whether or not your baby is getting enough sleep, pay attention to how they seem when they’re awake. Crankiness is a tip-off that your baby needs more rest, says Harbhajan. “If your baby is calm and content when they are awake, then they are getting enough sleep,” she says.
Sickness or changes in routine can cause babies to sleep more or less than normal, Harbhajan says. It’s cause for concern if your baby prioritizes sleep overeating and doesn’t wake up for feedings. “If your baby doesn’t seem to be gaining weight or is having trouble feeding, make an appointment with your pediatrician,” says Harbhajan.