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Click 'Print' and you have saved your webpage to a PDF file.
Sleep
Babies - up to 18 months
What’s normal
It is normal for babies under the age of 18 months old to wake up frequently throughout the night for various reasons:
· Hunger – needing regular feeds
· Hygiene – wet or soiled nappies
· Pain – teething, acid reflux, colic
· Developmental milestones – changing positions, rolling, sitting and standing
Babies are not born with a body clock so cannot tell the difference between day and night. Their body clock develops over time.
Top tips
- Encourage your child to come off all technology and screens 1 hour before bedtime
- Dim the lights to help your child’s body produce melatonin (the sleep hormone)
- Help your child to take part in a calm activity or have a small snack before bed
- Try giving your child a bath or shower before bed
- Let your child get into bed and look at books or listen to calm music
- Make sure your child goes to bed at the same time every night
- Create a calm bedroom environment - Keep your child’s bedroom tidy and clutter free
- Make sure your child sleeps with a comfortable mattress and bedding
- Check if they are too hot or too cold. Keep the bed away from windows, draughts and radiators. The temperature should be around 16 to 20 degrees Celsius according to the ‘Lullaby Trust’. This is the safest room temperature.
Charity Support
3 - 5 years
What’s normal
It is normal for pre-school children to wake up frequently throughout the night for various reasons:
- Hygiene – wet or soiled nappies are common at this age
- Dreaming, nightmares and night terrors are normal at this age
- Developmental milestones – changing from cots or cotbeds to a bed and having freedom to move
Sleep associations are normal for many children, such as having a parent near, dummies, comforters, or teddies.
Pre-school children have developed their circadian rhythm and can tell the difference between day and night.
5 - 11 years
What’s normal
It is normal for young children to wake up frequently throughout the night for various reasons:
- Hunger or thirst – due to growth spurts
- Developmental milestones – discomfort from growing pains
- Fear or anxiety – normal with changes to daily routines, for example, school or friendships
- Dreaming, nightmares, night terrors and fear of the dark are normal at this age
11 years and above
What’s normal
It is normal for children to have varied sleep patterns for various reasons:
- Hunger or thirst – due to growth spurts
- Developmental milestones – discomfort from growing pains and hormonal changes
- Fear or anxiety – normal with changes to daily routines, for example transition to secondary school, friendship groups, exam pressures
- Dreaming and nightmares
- Technology and social media – It is normal for children to be reluctant to stop using digital devices or remove them from their bedroom, but it is normal for these devices to have an impact on good sleep
- Taking longer to go to sleep – normal due to hormonal changes
When to worry / Red flags
- A disordered breathing pattern when they are asleep
- If the time taken to fall asleep after getting into bed is over 1 hour
- If the longest sleep period including naps throughout the day is less than 8 hours (children between 1 year and 10 years of age)
- If the longest period is less than 6 hours (children over 10 years of age)
- Excessive daytime sleepiness
