How much sleep should a child sleep: sleep standards for children

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“He fell asleep, you can breathe out” - millions of parents around the world say this phrase every day. And they look enviously at those whose children fall asleep quickly and do not open their eyes after several minutes of rest.

How is a sleep schedule established for children? In the first months after birth, babies' sleep is influenced mainly by the body's biological rhythms. It is almost impossible to regulate them, and you just have to come to terms with the fact that the baby wakes up whenever he wants.

Why is sleep so important for children?

After 4-5 months of life, babies’ bodies begin to produce melatonin, a hormone responsible for sleep, which regulates the body’s circadian rhythms. Its quantity increases with the onset of darkness. So if you want your baby to sleep soundly, dim the lights in his room beforehand.

Another hormone that affects the speed of falling asleep and quality of sleep is cortisol. It is released in moments of overexcitement and extreme fatigue and is designed to fill the body with new strength. But it will be very difficult for the baby to fall asleep until he spends them. Therefore, try to ensure that your child plays calm games before bed and does not become overly tired. Make sure his routine doesn't change too much from day to day.

In the first months of life, the baby spends many hours sleeping - this takes up most of the day. Experts say that any number between 14 and 22 hours a day is considered normal sleep. Provided that the baby is healthy, gains weight within normal limits, and falls asleep without hysterics.

In the first weeks and even months of life, sleep is an important factor in a child's development. During sleep, the brain begins to process and systematize all the information acquired during the waking period. New neural connections are created, skills are consolidated, and feelings received through the organs of hearing and vision are realized.

During sleep, growth hormone is released, muscles and bones develop. Therefore, children who sleep little often have noticeable delays in height and weight.

In addition, the baby's strength is restored. If he is too tired, he has poor control of his body: as a result, coordination is lost and habitual tasks are more difficult to solve. Immune cells are also formed during sleep: a person who lacks sleep at any age is more likely to suffer from colds and other diseases. And what can we say about babies!

According to scientists, it is sleep that helps the brain of newborns grow and develop to a full state in a short period of time. It has also been proven that if children under one year old get less rest than they should, sleep problems persist into later life. Over time, behavior worsens, the baby becomes more whiny and impulsive. Therefore, ensuring healthy sleep for your child is simply necessary.

The rest of infants, like that of adults, consists of phases of rapid and slow sleep. During the first, the baby may move his limbs, make sucking movements, make various sounds and even start crying. We advise you to control yourself and not immediately grab the child in your arms. Most likely, he will calm down after a few seconds and continue to sleep.

When transitioning from one phase of sleep to another, the newborn sometimes wakes up briefly to assess his surroundings and his condition. Experts recommend gently lulling your baby to sleep in the crib without picking him up: you can gently stroke the baby, sing songs, and hug him. Then the baby will gradually get used to falling asleep in his own place, and not in his parents’ arms.

It is important to remember that newborn babies need to wake up every 3-4 hours to eat. Therefore, there is nothing wrong with waking up a child who has been sleeping for too long, feeding him, changing his clothes and putting him back to sleep.

The safest position for newborns is to sleep on their back, as sleeping on their tummy can cause breathing problems for babies.

Features of feeding

A 2 month old baby's daily routine largely depends on meal times. Young parents often think about what their feeding schedule should be. It is not difficult to establish an artificial feeding regimen - you should adhere to the recommended intervals between meals of 3.5-4 hours. In infants, according to Dr. Komarovsky, this schedule may shift. Please keep the following in mind:

Weak and premature babies must be woken up for feeding;
On the contrary, it is better not to disturb healthy and strong babies during sleep;
Before putting the baby into bed after eating, he needs to be held in an upright position for 15 minutes. This is necessary for the baby to burp air;
There is no need to wake him up specifically for night feeding. The baby's stomach should rest for at least several hours in a row.

Feeding your baby by month
Need to know! Night feedings stimulate lactation.

If a breastfed baby receives formula supplementation, it is better to give additional food in the evening, since it is at this time that the mother’s milk supply decreases.

Breast-feeding

Pediatricians strongly recommend feeding your baby on demand. A two-month-old baby may breastfeed quite often, but this is not something to be afraid of. Gradually, the frequency of breastfeeding will decrease. If a baby on breastfeeding constantly asks to eat, but does not gain weight well, you should consult a pediatrician - perhaps the doctor will prescribe a mixed type of feeding (additional feeding with formula milk). How much milk the baby sucks can be checked using control feeding.

We recommend reading: Methods for a child to fall asleep independently at 4, 5, 6, 9, 10 and 12 months: how to teach

Artificial feeding

According to the regimen, a 2-month-old baby should receive only formula milk. The baby should not receive any additional juices, purees or complementary foods. You should not change your diet frequently - this can lead to allergies and stomach upsets.

Attention! The artificial one must be fed strictly according to the clock. If you give your baby a bottle every time he squeaks, his stomach won't be able to handle the large volume of food. The main sign of overeating is frequent, excessive regurgitation.

During the waking period, you need to do a lot with your child

How much sleep does a baby need at 1 month of age?

If in the first weeks of life most babies wake up quite often and quickly fall asleep again, then in the following days the period of their wakefulness gradually increases, they begin to realize the differences between night and day.

Although there are still no strict standards, a month-old baby's sleep period is usually 18-20 hours a day. Most often, by this age, children develop several periods of daytime sleep and a certain nighttime sleep pattern.

You should be wary when in the first month of life the child does not sleep and is capricious a lot. If you have been examined by your pediatrician and your child is completely healthy, your sleep problems may have been caused by an uncomfortable room temperature (either too low or too high), the presence of irritating sounds or insects, or bright lighting.

In addition, at this age, the baby is very dependent on the mother’s condition: if she is overly irritated or upset, the child is likely to be nervous and restless. Therefore, pay attention not only to the comfort and needs of your children, but also to your own peace of mind.

Features of wakefulness

2 months is the time when the baby begins to pay attention to the world around him. If earlier his awakenings were associated only with the need to refresh himself, now he is able to stay awake for an hour and a half .

As the baby develops psycho-emotionally and mentally, his activity also increases. Having felt the ability to control muscles (due to the weakening of the flexor muscle tone), he begins to perform many targeted movements. Vision and hearing, improving day by day (the baby is able to see objects seven meters away from him), allow him to recognize close people and gradually navigate in space. This is largely facilitated by strengthening the neck muscles, which allow the baby to turn his head in the direction he needs.

We recommend reading: Why doesn't my child sleep under the covers?

How much sleep does a baby need after 3 months?

The child grows, his daily routine gradually changes, and parents have a question about how much a child should sleep at 3 months of his life. Practice shows that on average children of this age spend 17-18 hours a day sleeping:

During the day, babies spend about 7 hours sleeping. Usually these are 2 deep sleeps of 2.5-3 hours and 2 light sleeps of 30 minutes each.
Night sleep is longer and more sound, it takes about 9-10 hours. During this time, the baby will need to be fed at least once.

From 3 months, the baby can be gradually accustomed to a daily routine that is comfortable for everyone. Some parents think that if the child falls asleep later, then he will sleep longer. But practice shows that the exact opposite is true: children who go to bed between 20:00 and 22:00 usually sleep better. The explanation for this is the hormone melatonin, already known to us, the concentration of which begins to increase after 8 pm.

Establishing a regime

Daily routine of a one-year-old child

You need to establish a daily routine gradually so that a sudden change in the time of getting up or feeding does not become stressful for the baby. Experts recommend shifting your usual feeding or waking time by 2-3 minutes every day. A sample daily routine includes:

8:00 – rise;
10:00 – sleep while walking;
11:00 – feeding, waking up, massage or gymnastics;
12:00 – sleep while walking;
14:00 – feeding;
15:00 – sleep while walking;
17:00 – awakening, feeding, educational games and activities;
18:00 – sleep;
20:00 – evening swimming;
21:00 – night sleep.

During night sleep, several feedings are possible on demand (for a baby); for an artificial baby, only one night meal is allowed.

Breastfeeding schedule

When breastfeeding, additional meals may be included in the schedule at the request of the baby. For example, if your baby wakes up and gets hungry during a walk, in the summer you can feed him in a secluded place, covering him with a sling scarf. Also, during the day, the baby will have to change diapers frequently; Breastfed children have more bowel movements than formula-fed children.

Schedule for artificial people

The most important thing for artificially fed animals is not to violate the established feeding time under any circumstances. If your child wakes up earlier than usual and is hungry, you can give him a pacifier to satisfy his sucking reflex. Between meals, it is necessary to give the baby drinking water several times a day. Otherwise, the artificial baby’s schedule is no different from the daily routine of a 2-month-old baby suckling at the mother’s breast.

You should feed your artificial baby by the hour.

How long should a child over 1 year sleep?

Every month the baby grows and develops, and at the same time the balance of hours of sleep and wakefulness changes. For normal development, babies from one year old need to sleep 13-14 hours a day. Typically this time is distributed as follows:

nap before lunch - 2-3 hours;
nap after lunch - 1-1.5 hours;
night sleep - 10-11 hours;

Usually the baby himself does not fully understand that he needs to go to bed. However, you can notice this by several signs:

The baby does not want to play, do some simple things, and constantly turns away.
The child rubs his eyes, yawns, frowns.
Becomes overly mobile and excited, pushes and falls.
Nervous and capricious for no apparent reason.

In order to put your child to sleep faster, you can gradually reduce the lighting in the room, switch to calmer activities and games, and sing calm songs to him.

In the evening before going to bed, you can and should make it a rule to carry out a bath ritual to maintain hygiene: fill the bath with warm water (the water temperature should be about 37°C, and the air temperature should not be lower than 24°C), take your child’s favorite rubber toys with you.

Prepare a rinse jug, a clean towel with a hood, and hygiene products in advance. An excellent addition would be foam and bathing shampoo “Bayu-bayushki” from the My Sun® brand. Natural lavender extract gently cares for your baby's skin and sets him up for a good night's sleep.

It is very important to moisturize your baby’s skin after bathing, so a light moisturizer “Bayu-bayushki” will help complete the ritual. Apply it to the baby's body with light stroking movements; it will ideally soften the baby's skin, making it soft and silky. The delicate aroma of lavender is ideal for a sound and sweet sleep for your baby.

From about 18 months, the child’s body is ready to switch to one nap during the day (from 1.5 to 2 hours). A sudden change in the established regime can be stressful for the baby, so you need to carefully monitor his condition.

At first, it is quite possible to alternate days when the baby sleeps 2 times during the day with days with one daytime nap. Moreover, in the second case, parents often put the baby to bed earlier in the evening to make up for the missing hours of sleep.

Shared or separate sleep: which is better?

One of the most effective ways to put your baby to sleep is co-sleeping. This method, at first glance, is ideal for the child and mother. The baby does not need to be weaned or shifted for fear of waking him up. The baby feels the warmth and smell of his mother, so he sleeps peacefully and soundly.

Parents do not worry about the child; they do not have to get up in the middle of the night to see how the baby is feeling. Also, the benefits of sleeping together include the unity of the biorhythms of mother and baby and the maintenance of lactation.

But sleeping a child in the same bed with parents has certain disadvantages:

there is a risk of harm to the baby due to careless movement;
Parents are under constant stress, so they do not sleep soundly. This negatively affects performance;
the appearance of difficulties when placing the baby in a cradle or crib during the day. The child gets used to having his mother next to him while he sleeps;
there is less space in the bed;
there is a risk of overfeeding the baby;
infringements in the intimate life of young spouses;
In the future, difficulties arise when accustoming the child to his own bed. In most cases, he categorically refuses to sleep alone, sometimes even for several years later;
the likelihood of infecting the baby with ARVI or influenza if one of the parents is sick. It should be borne in mind that signs of pathology do not appear immediately after infection. The incubation period can range from 2 to 5 days. At this time, a person is considered a carrier of the virus.

Many doctors do not recommend co-sleeping

Some psychiatrists claim that co-sleeping contributes to delayed mental development of the baby and infantility. Most pediatricians believe that it is necessary to teach the child to rest separately from the mother.

At first, in order for the baby to feel calm, it is necessary to place his bed next to the parents’ bed. Gradually the baby's sleeping place is moved away. This allows you to accustom him to separate rest without harm to the child.

Walks

Walking in the fresh air is extremely beneficial for every child. Their duration in the warm season can be at least one and a half hours. The best times for this are morning (before 11) and evening (after 16). It is best to walk in the lacy shade of trees, protecting your baby from the bright rays of the sun.

In winter, walks with a 2-month-old child are possible only at temperatures exceeding -10 degrees. The best clothing for a sedentary baby is a bib overalls with a natural fur lining and a lower part made in the form of an envelope.

The awake baby must be taken out of the stroller, showing him the world around him. You should take your baby for a walk in a place far from polluted highways: a quiet park or a calm courtyard .

Activities and educational games

Two months of age is a great time to train the senses . In order for the baby to learn to follow moving objects, focusing his gaze on them, it is necessary to purchase several very light and bright rattles, painted in red, yellow and orange, since now he perceives only these warm colors. The sound of the rattle should not be scary, but pleasant.

Taking a rattle, you can approach the baby from the side and shake it thirty centimeters from him, forcing the baby to turn his head in the direction of the sound. By transferring the toy to the other hand, they try to turn its head in the opposite direction in the same way. The mother can simply call the baby in a gentle voice, approaching the crib from different sides, so that, in response to the sound, he turns his head in the right direction;
It is useful to place a rattle in a child's hand. Weak fingers are able to hold it for only thirty seconds. This is an excellent exercise that prepares the muscles of the hand for the act of grasping;
You can hang a garland of bright rattles over your baby's crib so that he can reach it with his arms or legs. The sound made by the garland in response to the baby’s touch leads him to surprise and delight, forcing him to wave his arms and move his legs even more actively;
A bright rattle can be placed in front of the baby, laid out on his tummy (it is better to do this in a crib without a mattress or in a playpen). A healthy baby should raise his head, lean on his forearms and, raising his chest, look forward. A bright object will certainly attract his attention and force him to stay in this position for some time, looking at the objects lying in front of him;
To develop fine motor skills, you can play “magpie-white-sided” with your child. While fingering and massaging each finger, you need to recite the text of the poem.

The duration of developmental activities with the baby should not exceed twenty minutes. You need to talk to him affectionately, emotionally, often changing intonation, read children's poems, sing simple songs. Having heard the baby “booming”, calling on his mother to communicate, it is necessary to respond to his call. Otherwise, the “humbling” will soon stop, which will inevitably lead to a delay in speech and impaired emotional development.

Gymnastics and massage

It is best to perform gymnastics in the morning:

Putting the baby on his back, raise and lower his arms (first alternately, then simultaneously);
Having spread the arms, cross them in front of the chest, leaving either the left or the right arm at the top;
They extend their arms one by one, imitating the movements of a boxer;
Taking the baby by the heels, they imitate riding a bicycle with their legs;
The legs bent at the knees are then brought to the tummy, then straightened;
Supporting the baby under the arms, they lift and lower him, forcing him to push off with his legs from the support.

A baby suffering from gas will also benefit greatly from a massage. To do this, you need to place the child on his back, bend his knees and stroke his tummy with light circular movements for several minutes.

When laying the baby on his tummy (at least three times a day), you can gently stroke his back, arms, legs, and buttocks. This massage helps improve digestion.

Read useful material with video instructions: proper massage for a child in the first three months of life

Bathing

When bathing a two-month-old baby, you must follow a number of simple rules:

The use of special detergents is allowed no more than once a week;
For daily bathing, babies use ordinary clean water;
If your baby has heat rash or diaper rash, you can add chamomile and chamomile infusions to the bath;
The optimal water temperature for bathing a baby is thirty-seven degrees;
It is not at all necessary to bathe the baby before going to bed for the night. If the baby protests and is capricious, you can do this during the daytime or morning hours, when he is awake.

We recommend reading: Changing time zones: adaptation

How can you tell if your child hasn't slept enough?

There are several signs that will help you determine if your baby needs more sleep:

He instantly falls asleep in the car or stroller, which begins to move.
He doesn’t wake up on his own in the morning: you have to wake him up.
He eats little: poor appetite often indicates lack of sleep. The child simply does not have the strength to eat a hearty meal.
He often wakes up at night or opens his eyes half an hour to an hour after falling asleep. Paradoxically, this means that the child did not sleep enough during the day.
The baby's behavior changes: he is more capricious and cries, looks overtired, constantly asks to be held, and unexpectedly falls asleep.
Lack of sleep is especially noticeable before you put your child to bed in the evening: he screams and cries from fatigue and cannot fall asleep for more than 20 minutes.

If it seems to you that your child is sleeping less than expected, try keeping a special diary. Track how much the baby slept at night and during the day, what time he falls asleep and opens his eyes, how often he wakes up at night, how long it takes to fall asleep again.

Analyze the data obtained and compare it with typical indicators for the baby’s age. If he sleeps a couple of hours less than he should, it means he probably doesn’t get enough sleep. You need to try to identify the reasons yourself, and if nothing works, contact a specialist.

How to put a two month old baby to sleep

There are so many people here, so many opinions, and each of them has the right to exist. So, let's begin.

Method 1. Falling asleep on your own. It is possible to fully transfer a child to fall asleep independently only after 6 months. After 4 months you can begin active training. At 2 months, the child is still very small, so if he cannot fall asleep on his own, you should not insist on it. To minimize this stage of falling asleep, it is recommended to put the baby in the crib only after he begins to show sleepiness - yawning, squinting, rubbing his eyes. At the same time, watch if the baby cries and asks to see his mother, take him and do not make him cry for a long time. Such stress is not at all good for the child’s psyche and his trust in his mother. When the child falls asleep, put him in the crib so that he does not get used to sleeping only in his arms or next to his mother.

Method 2: Motion sickness. At one time, a lot was said about its dangers. The luminaries of Soviet and post-Soviet pediatrics convinced parents that motion sickness leads to sleep disturbances, and subsequently to the child’s spoilage and excessive dependence on his mother. The trend of recent years does not prohibit rocking: if you are worried about the emotional health of yourself and your baby, rock him to health, even in your arms, even in a stroller or rocking chair, even in a sling or on a fitball.

Method 3: Falling asleep at the chest. This method works “excellently” - the child, having received the required portion of food, falls asleep quickly and deeply, and it’s even easier for the mother. The main thing is to carefully transfer the sleeping child to the crib without waking him up. And, of course, make sure that the baby does not choke on milk while falling asleep.

Method 4: Ritual. A certain sequence of actions helps to develop a clear algorithm. For example, an evening bath, a relaxing massage, and then feeding and sleep. Over time, this regimen will allow the child to learn to fall asleep at the same time.