How Much Sleep Does Your Baby Need?

Sleep is important for babies, but just how much sleep is enough? Being a new parent is a whole new world, full of sometimes puzzling questions. So it's understandable that you might wonder just how much sleep your baby needs. We've got some general guidelines that detail how many hours of sleep the average child needs at different ages. Now, every child is different: some may need up to two hours more OR less sleep than others, so use the following information as a general proxy. A one-month-old baby needs about 8 hours of sleep at night, and 7 hours of naptime, which is often broken down into three 2 - 2 hour chunks of sleep, for a total daily sleep time of 15 hours and 30 minutes. Three month old infants need more night sleep, clocking in 10 hours of nighttime shuteye, and 5 total hours of naptime, often broken into 3 naps, for a total daily sleep time of 15 hours. Keep in mind that until most babies are at least four months old, their nighttime sleep will probably not be continuous. There is still a lot of middle of the night awakening. Six month olds are sleeping even more and for longer stretches at night, great for tired new parents! They're clocking in about 11 hours of nighttime sleep. And naptime sleep is about 3 hours, broken into 2 naps, for a total sleep time of 14-15 hours. Nine month olds, like six month olds, need 11 hours of nighttime sleep, and nap about 3 hours, broken into 2 naps, for a total daily sleep time of 14 hours. And when your baby hits the big 1 year, your little one should be getting about 11 hours, or so, of nighttime sleep, and snoozing about 2 hours during daytime naps, for a total sleepy time log of 14 hours per day. Eventually your child will stop napping (unless you live in a Mediterranean country) and will begin doing all of his or her sleeping at night. Most children in the United States give up naps by 3 or 4 years of age. Preschoolers and young elementary school students will still need up to 10 or 11 hours of sleep a night, but that amount will gradually lessen. By the time your little baby is a teenager, your child will need only about nine or ten hours of shut-eye per night. But that's a time away, isn't it? For now, babies need lots of sleep. And that's good for new parents, since it gives you a chance to catch up on yours!