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Morgan Smith
Ms. VanderSlik
ENLG 100-15
4 December 2014
Infant Sleep
Sleep is one of the most crucial actions taken in everyday life. It is the time where the
body rejuvenates itself. A persons sleep pattern is formed as they grow from infant to toddler,
toddler to kid, kid to teen, and teenager to adult. Not only the sleeping patterns, but the
personalities that someone possesses when they are older, are determined by the environment
they are brought up in. For example, when a child is raised where they do not receive an
adequate amount of sleep, they tend to be unhealthy physically and are more set back, or can
even act out in an unattractive manner. Everything that happens from infancy, and on, impacts
someones life in more ways than one.
The growth between infancy to toddler is the most important time of a childs life. This is
when their bodies develop and it aids in their ability to control everyday bodily functions. An
infants sleep pattern will develop over their first year of life. As we age, our sleep patterns
change. During our first few months, we spend progressively less time in REM sleep, (Myers
108). Starting in their first three months, they can sleep up to five hours throughout the night and
nap multiple times during the day. Between three and five months, their hours of sleep at night
will increase to about eight hours, plus they will still nap throughout the afternoon. By one year
they should be able to sleep through the night and be able to nap only once or twice during the
day.

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The reason that infants will wake during the night, or take shorter naps, is because their
stomachs are about the size of a marble. Meaning they need to eat often. Breastfed infants will
wake more often than infants who are formula fed, because breast milk is digested easier. Their
sleep patterns are solely based around their need to grow in health and in length. Many say that
they sleep too much, and should not sleep as long as they do, but it is proven that a baby knows
when to sleep because they are training themselves, along with the help of their parents.
Infants can typically sleep up to 17 hours in one day. They will not stay asleep for any
more than two to four hours each time during their first few weeks of life. Between six and eight
weeks, after birth, they will be able to take shorter naps during the day and sleep for longer
amounts of time at night. As they grow older their stomachs grow and their feedings are not as
often as they were before. Some babies are found to reach the milestone of eight to twelve hours
of sleep at night by the age of four to six months, but many will not reach this until they are
between six months to a year. Their sleep patterns are brought on by their need for growth, as
well as the fact that humans are mammals.
Mammals are scientifically found to sleep comfortably in a nest or den-like
environment. This is also known as being a habit of altricial animals. This fits a broader
principle: A species sleep pattern tends to suit its ecological niche, (Siegel, 2009), (Myers 98).
Humans are also found to be precocial, meaning that they are well developed, giving them the
abilities to recognize and learn as they do. For example, babies learn from the beginning who
their parents are, and when and how to feed from their mothers. A part of being well-developed
is that babies are tuned in to their parents moods, and a babys sleep pattern can affect them as
well. Bethany Hunt, an experienced mother, states, Mothers of babies who dont have adequate
sleep are often more stressed. Babies feed on that stress, which can cause the baby their own

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amount of stress, which can cause a lack of sleep or similar issues with their interacting. It is one
big cycle. Sleeping also gives aid to their health, as mentioned before.
An infants health is greatly impacted by their sleeping patterns. With adequate rest they
will have physical health, a healthy brain, a built immune system, and are more than likely to be
well behaved. Children who do not feel healthy are usually found to be of bad behavior. Their
sleep has been discovered as important as their eating. An infants growth benefits from sleep,
because there is a hormone that is only released during their resting periods, this is commonly
known as their time of growth spurts:
During deep sleep, the pituitary gland releases a growth hormone. This hormone is
necessary for muscle development. A regular full nights sleep can also dramatically improve
your athletic ability, report James Maas and Rebecca Robins. As we age, we release less of this
hormone and spend less time in deep sleep, (Pekkanen, 1982), (Myers 99).
These spurts not only help their bodies grow, but it also is of service to their learning and
interacting. Hunt has experienced that Babies who get adequate sleep are less fussy, eat better,
follow better schedules, and are more alert during crucial parts of the interacting time of the
day. It has also been concluded that if sufficient and consistent sleep patterns are kept
throughout a childs life, they can have further success in school and creativity:
Sleep feed creative thinking. On occasion, dreams have inspired noteworthy literary,
artistic, and scientific achievements, such as the dream that clued chemist August Kekul to the
structure of benzene, (Ross, 2006). More commonplace the boost that a complete nights sleep
give to our thinking and learning. After working on a task, then sleeping on it, people solve
problems more insightfully than do those who stay awake, (Wagner et al., 2004). They also are

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better at spotting connections among novel pieces of information (Ellenbogen et al., 2007). To
think smart and see connections, it often pays to sleep on it, (Myers 99).
Transitioning from infancy into the toddler years is widely known as the most important
and influential times of anyones life. As much as interacting and learning are important during
these times, it is the most important to keep them healthy with, not only a well-balanced diet, but
healthy sleep patterns. An infants rest is of great significance to their learning and social
abilities. Hunt also knows the cons to a child having an inadequate amount of sleep, Babies who
do not get adequate sleep cry more, eat on different schedules, seem more anxious and upset.
They are often unable to be interested in toys, playing, learnings, reading and interacting.
Everything that happens from the moment of a babys birth, molds how they will end up
as a person down the road. Their social lives, eating habits, sleeping habits, and more are all
formed as they grow and the environment they are in. Whether it is that the parents do not help
their child to learn a healthy schedule, or if there is something wrong, such as an infant medical
issue that causes them to be restless or in constant pain, it all impacts the child. One child I
know has really high anxiety and cannot be in public without acting out. Another is always
crabby and cries a lot, Hunt shares, about a couple of her friends children. It is easiest to see
the positives and negatives of sleep patterns when two different lifestyles are compared to each
other.
In summary, sleep is extremely important, because it forms a person whether it is with
their health, their social lives, and their personalities. It is proven that when a child is given
adequate rest, from infancy and on, they are more than likely to be well-behaved, healthy
physically and mentally, and are more interactive with others. Being a sleep deprived infant can
cause them many issues in their present time, but also later on as teens and adults. The sleep

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patterns that a child, and their parents, teach them are a large part of what determines how they
will grow physically and socially. Sleep is one of the most important aspects of ones life
throughout infancy to adulthood.

Works Cited
Baby Sleep Basics: Birth to 3 Months. BabyCenter. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Dec. 2014.
Hunt, Bethany D. Personal interview. 20 Nov. 2014.
Myers, David G. Psychology. 10th ed. New York: Worth, 2013. Print.
"Infants (0-1 Year of Age)." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease

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Control and Prevention, 11 Mar. 2014. Web. 18 Nov. 2014.
ISIS : How babies Sleep - ISIS Online. ISIS : How Babies Sleep - ISIS Online. N.p., n.d. Web.
18 Nov. 2014.
Sleep, Infants and Parents. Sleep for Babies: Training & Techniques. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 dec.
2014.
"Why Sleep Is Way Important- Benefits of Adequate Sleep ~ My Baby Sleep Guide - Your Baby
Sleep Problems Solved!" My Baby Sleep Guide. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Nov. 2014.