Baby's sleep

Baby's sleep is one of the most worrying subjects for parents. The arrival of a baby turns parents' lives upside down, especially when they don't sleep. In this article, you will discover everything you need to know about baby's sleep and some tips to help your little one sleep through the night.

Here are the main functions of sleep:

• Growing up: growth hormone is secreted at night
• Good functioning of the immune system
• Brain maturation: sleep plays an important role in the creation and consolidation of neural connectivity
• Consolidate memory through coordinated stimulation and reinforcement of neural circuits

The biological clock begins to be set up as early as the 18th week of pregnancy and becomes functional at 24 weeks. Then the maturation will continue during the first three years. It is the alternation of light and darkness after birth that will allow the biological clock to follow the 24-hour day/night rhythm.

On average over a 24-hour day:

• A newborn sleeps an average of 16 to 17 hours a day
• Between 0 and 3 months: 2-6pm 
• At 6 months : 14 h
• At 1 year old : 1-14h
• At 3 years old : 12-13h
• After 6 years: decrease in sleep time 

Following numerous studies and observations of baby's sleep, here are the states highlighted:

• The quiet sleep The baby is almost completely immobile:
  • Tonic
  • Closed fists
  • Eyes closed without eye movement
  • Calm and regular breathing.
• The restless sleep :  presence of movements body and eye movements as well as body movements. 
  • Rapid breathing
  • Muscle atony interspersed with body movements
  • Very expressive face 
• Quiet watch: rare. Short moments of a few minutes during which the baby is attentive to his environment.
• Restless waking is more common than calm waking. There may be crying or laughing.

Cycles get longer as we get older

• Newborn : 50-60min
• Infant 3 months - 2 years : 70 min
• Young children: 90-120 min
• Adolescent: young child: 90-120 min 

Between each cycle, there are micro-awakenings. Don't rush to your child's awakening, he or she will probably fall back to sleep on their own.

A baby is said to sleep through the night when he or she sleeps at least 5 or 6 hours in a row between 11 p.m. and 8 a.m.

• At 2 months (8 weeks), only 1 in 4 babies sleeps through the night 
• At 4 months: 3 out of 4 babies sleep through the night
•  At 10 months: 9 out of 10 babies sleep through the night.

Set up a routine before bedtime so that he gets used to it and prepares to fall asleep as soon as the routine starts.

For example: bath - bottle - story - bedtime

• Whisper
• Do not turn on the light, just a small night light
• Breastfeeding or bottle-feeding in the dark or semi-dark
• Do not wake him up (unless there is a problem with weight gain)
• Do not change it at night (unless absolutely necessary)

• Don't draw the curtains when he is sleeping
• Watch for signs of fatigue (around 2 months) to help him fall asleep at the right time
• Do some activities: play on the carpet, take him for a walk in the fresh air

Sometimes it is a mechanical cause that disturbs your child's sleep. Osteopathy is there to help. An osteopath's role is to remove any small mechanical problems that may be disturbing your child.

Thus, thanks to gentle and painless techniques, your osteopath will treat your child from head to toe in order to allow his or her body to function optimally and allow you to have a good night's sleep.

Marie Messager
Osteopath D.O
Specialized in pediatrics
In Versailles - 78