Very regularly we hear things in our work with families that are worryingly inaccurate! Some things are old wives tales that have been disproved by modern science, other things are just downright, frustratingly, mass hype and hysteria.
Let us debunk a few such “myths” around baby sleep for you.
MYTH: Babies don’t need much day sleep if they sleep well at night.
FACT: Day sleep and night sleep is intrinsically linked. The first 12 hours of your baby’s day directly affects the next 12 (the night). A baby who sleeps well in the day will also sleep well at night, provided their daily cumulative nap hours haven’t been exceeded for their age. For a baby who is already sleeping through the night but napping poorly, establishing better naps will not adversely affect their nights in the long-run, however continued poor napping will definitely start to negatively impact on their night sleep after a while.
MYTH: Babies younger than 6 months can’t sleep through the night.
FACT: A baby’s ability to sleep through the night depends on so many factors – their weight, their daily milk and food intake, their sleep environment, whether they’re swaddled or not (for younger babies), the temperature in their room, whether they’re sick, how much day sleep they’ve had, whether they’re able to settle themselves to sleep (in babies older than 4 months). It is completely possible for a baby as young as 6 weeks to sleep through the night in the right circumstances.
MYTH: Some babies don’t like being swaddled.
FACT: Swaddling babies younger than 4-5 months is proven time and time again to assist in them settling and sleeping for longer stretches. Some babies seem to struggle or cry when being swaddled and people often assume this means their baby doesn’t like being swaddled. Usually it is because the baby is already overtired or may be undertired, the swaddle is too hot, or it’s not tight enough. Babies who are swaddled sleep better.
Hopefully this helps clear up some of your sleep concerns and sets you on a clearer path to better sleep.
Biloban Baby Bedding is a manufacturer of baby bedding products. Our aim is to offer super comfortable baby bedding products in affordable price。