Parents often complain that their children need to be held and fed to fall asleep and cry as soon as they are put down, and if you are experiencing similar problems, you are by no means alone. Baby’s sleep is a common concern for parents. According to statistics, China’s 0-5-year-old children have 20% to 30% of children with sleep problems, the most common manifestation is the difficulty of falling asleep, they usually need to hold sleep, milk to sleep or often snoring at night, sleep deprivation and so on. Children’s sleep problems seriously disturb parents, and even make the whole family suffer. Therefore, today we will share the topic about infant sleep. First, the importance of a good night’s sleep 1, sleep is our body’s most basic physiological needs. During sleep, the body’s basal metabolic rate decreases, which helps to eliminate fatigue, restore physical strength, so that the child has abundant physical strength and energy to receive some new things the next day. 2, sleep also plays an important role in promoting brain function. Infancy is a period of very rapid brain development, in the process of sleep, the brain is not completely stop working, but in another state to re-adjust its function, which is conducive to ensuring that the brain fully function. 3.Sleep also plays an important role in a child’s physical and cognitive development. About 80% of the growth hormone needed for a child’s growth is secreted during sleep, especially during deep sleep, which is the peak of growth hormone secretion, generally between 10 o’clock at night and 1:00 or 2:00 a.m. Therefore, good sleep is the key to a child’s height and cognitive development. So a good night’s sleep is an important foundation for a child’s height and weight development. Quality sleep can also promote the baby’s learning ability, memory and organization, creativity and other cognitive functions of the development. 4, good sleep enhances the immune function of the child’s body, and can help the child to better stabilize the mood and so on. Second, infant sleep patterns and patterns According to the recommendations of the American Sleep Foundation in 2015, children of different ages need to sleep for 14-17 hours a day, 4-11 months: 12-15 hours, 1-2 years old: 11-14 hours, and 3-5 years old: 10-13 hours. Of course every child is different and there will be some individual differences. The sleep cycle of a child is divided into two phases during sleep: REM sleep – this is the phase when a person is very active in dreaming. Sometimes you can see the child’s eyes moving under the closed eyelids, sometimes there will be a sudden movement of the arms and legs, or some small facial movements, laughing, frowning and so on. Non-REM sleep period – Non-REM sleep is categorized into: drowsiness, light sleep, deep sleep, and deep sleep. The process from light to deep sleep, in which the child moves less and less and breathing gradually becomes calmer, is also known as the quiet sleep period. Each sleep cycle is made up of two stages, REM sleep and non-REM sleep. Infants and young children have different sleep patterns as their age changes: newborns almost every sleep cycle is composed of equal amounts of REM sleep and non-REM sleep, to about three months, the child’s sleep-wake biological clock gradually began to take shape, and as the age of growing up, the REM sleep stage will gradually decrease, so that when sleeping at night it will be quieter and quieter, and by the age of three years old, the duration of REM sleep Generally not more than 1/3 of the total sleep time. Third, how to cultivate good sleep habits of the baby The baby has just come to the world, the plasticity is very strong. If parents help their babies to develop a good sleep habit when they are small, the children will benefit for a lifetime. If parents do not do a good job in this regard, so that the baby to form a hold to sleep, pat to sleep, milk to sleep and other bad habits, then want to correct it will need to pay more time and energy. 1, the formation of day and night habits of rest and relaxation The child was just born is most likely to have a variety of diseases of a high incidence period, may need to be indoors with enough light to observe the child’s situation. About two weeks after birth, it is necessary to gradually establish a day and night routine. During the day, more laughter, play, naps, but also keep the room bright, do not need the whole family tiptoe, not too much noise can be, dimming the light at night, changing diapers, breastfeeding, etc. end immediately put back to sleep, do not talk about the game, etc., so that the baby knows the difference between day and night. 2, as early as possible to find the child tired signal baby tired to sleep, usually make some special action: some babies will be a little irritable, play when the attention is not focused, some babies are rubbing eyes, some babies rub nose or yawn. If these signs of exhaustion are responded to by parents in time, the baby’s sense of security improves and the quality of sleep is better. Parents should be careful observation, early detection of their own baby’s sleep signals, timely let the baby rest sleep. The child child is too tired instead will be difficult to fall asleep because of excitement, irritability and impatience. The mental state of the baby when falling asleep can affect the quality of the baby’s sleep throughout the night. Research has confirmed that babies who go to bed in a fully awake or sleepy but not asleep state wake up less often and sleep continuously for a longer period of time during the night compared to babies who are fully asleep before being put to bed. Unfortunately, 57.2% of Chinese babies are put to bed when they are already fully asleep. Some babies are used to falling asleep in their parents’ arms, and mothers and fathers wait until their babies are fully asleep before they dare to put them to bed. It is recommended that mothers and fathers learn to detect the signals of tiredness as early as possible, and put their babies to bed in their own cots when they are sleepy but not asleep, so that they can learn to fall asleep on their own. 3, appropriate daytime naps Children are young and easily fatigued. Can be fully rested through the daytime nap, so half a year old before the day can nap 3-4 times, after the day can nap 2-3 times. Don’t let your child get too tired. Not letting your child be quiet for too long will instead affect the quality and efficiency of your child’s sleep. Try to let the daytime nap arrangements in the morning, noon and afternoon, if some babies evening nap affects the evening sleep delay, you can try to wake up earlier in the evening nap, to 9 months or so try to cancel the evening nap. 4, the establishment of a fixed bedtime ritual in the child 2-3 months, parents can begin to cooperate with the child’s characteristics and daily habits, to help children establish a fixed bedtime ritual. Whenever it is time for the child to go to bed, carry out some fixed bedtime activities, such as storytelling, touch, soft music, bedtime bath, or repeat the same action, kiss him or touch his head, etc., every day to repeat the fixed bedtime activities, convey the “now going to sleep” signal, gradually develop a sleep conditioned reflex. Another thing to note is that these activities should not just mom do, dad and other family members should be involved, if only mom alone to participate, the baby will be mom alone and put him to sleep together. 5, reduce excessive intervention and disturbance Once the baby was born into the focus and center of the whole family, some parents are used to holding the child to sleep, or indulge the child to eat milk to sleep, the formation of habitual companionship and dependence, depriving the child of the opportunity to learn to self-pacify to sleep, and patting and hugging, shaking and other soothing measures will not only make the baby sleep latency increase, but also make the baby woke up at night and fall asleep again difficult. When the child wakes up briefly at night or is in an active sleep state, there will be some small movements, which are often mistaken by parents as sleep disturbance, waking up in the middle of the night, etc., to over-intervene or give too much care. In fact, this instead of disturbing the transformation of the sleep cycle of infants and young children, so that children really wake up. 6, in their own crib to sleep independently to let the child in their own cot to sleep. For babies under one year old, the best place to sleep is on a cot in the same room as the parents, “the same room, different beds”. Put your child to bed in his own cot, soothe him verbally for a short time if he cries, soothe him in as calm a voice as possible, keep the lights dimmed, don’t pick him up, and leave the room after a short period of soothing. Don’t leave for too long at first, you can leave for a few minutes and then come back to make sure that the baby is not uncomfortable, so that the child has ample opportunity to discover ways to calm himself, but also knows that mom and dad care about him. Leave again after a short period of calming, and repeat these steps until the baby falls asleep on his own. Some parents can’t tolerate letting their child cry himself to sleep, and picking him up and patting and shaking him as soon as he cries reduces the opportunity for the child to learn to fall asleep on his own. As an infant grows, he must learn how to come to himself calmly, especially after three or four months. You have all day to show your child how much you love him, and at night, he must know that it is bedtime, and those nights that make him cry are actually helping him learn to calm himself. At the end of the day, every child is unique, and mothers and fathers are the ones who know their children best, so through “selfless love” and “scientific learning”, help your baby become a quality sleeper! Of course, this will take a long time and the concerted efforts of all family members!