A Guide To Your New Family's First Weeks - Meriter Health Services

Sleeping
Newborns sleep an average of 13-14 hours out of 24
hours. They will usually have one sleep stretch of four
to five hours. Their sleep pattern is irregular during the
early weeks. Between six weeks to three months, they
may begin to sleep more hours during the night.
Your baby may have her days and nights mixed up. To
encourage more nighttime sleep, try the following:
• Wake your baby up at least every three hours during
the day and evening. This reduces the number of
hours slept and will allow your baby to eat more
frequently during these hours.
• During the night, minimize stimulation when your
baby awakes. Keep lights low, feed your baby in the
same room she sleeps in, talk softly and minimally,
keep baby warm and change her diaper only if
necessary.
Reducing The Risk Of Sudden Infant
Death Syndrome (SIDS)
What is SIDS
• It is the sudden death of an infant under 1 year,
which remains unexplained after a thorough case
investigation that includes a complete autopsy,
examination of the death scene and review of the
clinical history.
• It is rare during the first month, peaks between the
second and third months, then decreases.
• Since 1994, when the Back-to-Sleep program was
introduced, there has been a 50% reduction in SIDS.
Risk Factors for SIDS
• Maternal smoking during pregnancy and exposure to
cigarette smoke in infancy
• Sleeping on stomach
• Sleeping on a soft surface and/or blankets/bedding
over face
• Overheating due to warm environmental
temperature or over-bundling
• Late or no prenatal care
• Young maternal age
• Preterm or low birth weight infants
Infant Sleep
Although we associate the phrase “sleep like a baby” with good sleep, your newborn’s sleep behaviors will likely leave
you yearning for more sleep! Usually it takes months for your baby to develop a sleep pattern and begin to sleep long
hours during the night.
While in the hospital, infants are required to sleep
independently in their crib
Reducing The Risk Of SIDS
1. Place infant to sleep on his back. Side or stomach
sleeping are not considered safe positions for
infants.
2. Use a firm sleep surface.
3. Keep soft objects and loose bedding out of the crib.
4. Do not smoke during pregnancy.
5. We recommend a separate, but proximate,
sleeping environment.
• The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends
that the infant’s crib, bassinet, or co-sleeper be
placed in the parents’ bedroom.
• Sharing the bed with your baby is not
recommended.
• While in the hospital, infants are required to
sleep independently in their crib.
• Parents of multiples should place babies in
separate cribs.
6. Consider offering a pacifier at naptime and
bedtime.
• One SIDS death can be prevented for every 2,700
infants who use a pacifier when placed for sleep.
• Use the pacifier when placing the infant down for
sleep and do not reinsert it once the infant falls
asleep.
• If the infant refuses the pacifier, do not force your
baby to take it.
• Do not coat pacifiers in any sweet solution.
• Clean pacifiers often and replace them regularly.
• Delay pacifier introduction for breastfed infants
until one month of age to ensure that breastfeeding
is firmly established.
7. Avoid overheating.
8. Avoid commercial devices marketed to reduce the
risks of SIDS.
9. Do not use home monitors as a strategy to reduce
the risk of SIDS.
10.Avoid development of flat head by encouraging
tummy time, avoiding excessive time in car carriers
and bouncers and alternating the side of the head
your infant sleeps on.
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