Baby sleep: The five myths that cause unnecessary stress for parents From the idea that most infants sleep 12 hours to the suggestion that daytime naps can improve nighttime slumbers, we expose the biggest misconceptions that are troubling parents. From the idea that most infants sleep 12 hours to the suggestion that daytime naps can improve nighttime slumbers, we expose the biggest misconceptions that are troubling parents. Few aspects of child development are as rife with misinformation as infant sleep – a space that's largely been taken over by companies and books aimed at selling sleep programmes, coaching and advice. From the idea that babies should "sleep through" by six months of age to the belief that motion naps aren't restorative, here are five common myths about infant sleep – and what the scientific research actually says.While an infant or toddler "sleeping through" might be the holy grail for parents, it is relatively uncommon, as large studies of young children frequently show., for example, found that nearly seven in 10 six-month-olds woke at least once per night, while more than one in four 18-month-olds did., meanwhile, found that, on average, babies that were three, six, or eight months old woke more than twice per night; 12-month-olds woke 1.8 times per night; and 18- and 24-month-olds woke around once per night.Most baby sleep studies suggest children sleep around 12 hours a night, and anything less is seen as "insufficient" "Our data confirmed that one to three awakenings per night is common in early childhood. Almost all children woke up one-to-three times at night, while a minority slept through the night ," the researchers wrote. How frequently babies are waking, however, varies greatly. The Finnish researchers, for example, reported that at least one eight-month-old in the study woke up 21.5 times per night. These studies were based on parental report, meaning that babies might have woken even more frequently – their parents just weren't aware. When more objective measures of sleep are used, such as using video recordings to analyse children's sleep patterns, they indicate that infants wake even more often. Onemethod found that the average number of wakings was three wakes for 3-month-olds, 3.5 wakes for six-month-olds, 4.7 wakes for 9-month-olds and 2.6 wakes for 12-month-olds. But there is good news: as babies approach the end of their first year, their wakes decrease on their own. The Finnish study, for example, found that while nearly eight in 10 eight-month-olds woke at night, just one-quarter of two-year-olds did.Sometimes, you hear that children will continue to wake at night until they're taught not to. But this not only dismisses the fact that typically developing infants consolidate their sleep over time on their own . It also can overlook any underlying health conditions that can impact sleep.3. For most infants, 12 hours of sleep per night is quite a lot Google "baby sleep schedule" online, and you might notice a theme: most will suggest that infants sleep about 12 hours per night. Ever since the "7-7" schedule was popularised in Western and industrialised societies, anything less, particularly for babies and young children, has been seen as insufficient. While it is true that some children do need 12 hours a night, many do not – and for those children, being put down too early can lead to bedtime "battles", frequent wakes, or an early start the next morning.found that children from infancy up to almost five years of age slept 11 hours overnight on average, not 12. This was true even for the youngest babies studied, who were four to six months old.Gentle motion can help babies to sleep, and these naps are just as restorative as those taken in a crib found that babies aged three and under slept, on average, 10.17 hours a night in Australia, 9.96 in Canada, 10.51 in the UK and 9.74 in the US, but 8.73 hours in Taiwan, 9.02 in Hong Kong, and 9.15 in India and Indonesia, for example. Even in societies that tend to idealise 7-7 sleep, recommendations from sleep health associations indicate that a 12-hour night would be on the higher end of the spectrum. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine, for example,should be 12-16 hours for four-to-12-month-olds and 11-14 hours for one-to-two-year-olds. They do not make suggestions for how much of this should come from nighttime versus naps, given the lack of evidence. AndIt's common to see claims online that motion naps – like being in a pram, carried in a sling, or driving in a car – keep babies in a light, less restorative type of sleep. But there's no scientific evidence to this effect, and some research indicates the opposite may be true. the babies were more likely to fall asleep and less likely to cry when they were rocked at higher frequenciesNo published studies have yet examined infants' brain activity during motion naps, but some research haslooked at adults. These studies, which have used electroencephalogram devices to monitor brain activity during sleep, have found that Of course, it makes sense that motion naps wouldn't be detrimental to our brain development, since babies spent about 90% of their time sleeping while they were still in the womb – much of which, of course, happened while their mothers were walking or moving around, "rocking" them in utero.It is true that, when some babies get too tired, they get more aroused and stressed – which can make it harder for them to settle at night. But the idea that the more sleep a child gets during the day, the more sleep they'll get at night, isn't usually borne out by the research. after two years of age, children take longer to fall asleep at night, and wake more overnight, on days they nap, which uses wearable devices to monitor movements to assess sleep-wake patterns – a more objective measure of sleep than parent report. For babies at six or 15 weeks of age, napping longer than usual during the day didn't affect their nighttime sleep. But when babies were 24 weeks old, it did – with longer naps meaning more shut-eye overnight. It's important to note that this difference was slight: the six-month-olds had to sleep a full hour more in the day to get just 14 minutes more sleep at night.the babies slept a little more at night; they may have napped longer because they were having a growth spurt, for example – which may have been the same reason they then slept more at night, too. If it seems surprising that the research supporting "sleep breeds sleep" is underwhelming, it shouldn't be. That's because one of the main biological underpinnings for falling asleep is the. Also known as "sleep pressure", this rises the more hours babies go without sleep. If a baby has slept too much in the day for their own individual needs, it will make it harder – not easier – for them to fall asleep at bedtime. Sleep needs are individual and variable, and, like adults, infants can't be coaxed to get more sleep than their bodies need.Ruggeri is a journalist who explores the science, psychology and history of the ideas we take for granted. Her upcoming book on sleep will be published by BenBella in summer 2027. She is @mandyruggeri onAre you a 'morning lark' or a 'night owl'? Most of us have a sense of whether we are a lark or an owl, but is it really as black and white as it may seem?Can we trust our memory? Erm, no. Max Tobin explains how the peak-end rule distorts how we remember our past.The ancient trick that will help you make better decisionsIs this the true origin of Stockholm syndrome?Why conspiracy theories are so hard to challengeWe explore the secret world of cults through a psychological lens to try to understand how cults lure people in.Why some people are always lateWhy do so many of us fall for the ‘gambler’s fallacy’?This is the year to visit Morocco's quiet capital Visitor numbers to Morocco are surging, but not in the nation's sleepy, seaside capital. Here's why the newly minted 2026 Unesco World Book Capital is worth a second look.The Unabomber's campaign of violence had baffled investigators for almost two decades. The BBC reported on his arrest 30 years ago, when he "laid a trail to his own front door".A flurry of bizarre beauty therapies are trending on social media. But does the scientific research suggest they can be taken at face value?Space missions can succeed or fail from the support they get from mission control. Here, we look at the changing shape of Nasa's most important room in space.From childhood drives to the Rockies with his family to long hauls on the college comedy circuit, road trips have shaped Keegan-Michael Key's life.