Feeding your baby butter won’t help them sleep through the night, whatever TikTok says
- Written by: Karleen Gribble, Adjunct Professor, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Western Sydney University
Sleep is the holy grail for new parents. So no wonder many tired parents are looking for something to help their babies sleep.
A TikTok trend claims giving your baby a tablespoon or two of butter in the evening will help them sleep more at night.
As we’ll see, butter is just the latest food that promises to help babies sleep at night. But no single food can do this.
So if you’re a new parent and desperate for a good night’s sleep, here’s what to try instead.
Is my baby’s sleep normal?
Babies need help to fall asleep, through feeding, movement (like rocking) or touch (like a cuddle or massage).
Newborn babies also do not know night from day. Melatonin in breastmilk helps babies sleep more at night until they start to make this sleep-inducing hormone themselves. Bottlefed newborn babies do not have access to this melatonin. Regardless of how you feed your baby, it can take several months for them to develop a sleep pattern with longer stretches at night.
Babies also sleep lighter than older children and adults. Light sleep helps ensure they continue breathing, protecting them from SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome). It also means they wake easily and often.
The idea that babies should sleep deeply, alone and for long stretches, goes against their physiology. So “sleeping like a baby” usually means waking quite a lot at night.
Yet, many parents have been asked whether their baby is sleeping through the night and is a “good baby”. The perception is that if a baby doesn’t sleep for long stretches at night, it must be “bad”.
This may lead parents to say their babies sleep longer than they really do, setting unrealistic expectations for other new parents.
Could feeding butter do any harm?
The social pressure around baby sleep can add stress and anxiety for new parents. So the Tiktok trend about feeding babies butter may seem tempting.
But giving babies any solid food before they are around six months old is not recommended. Babies’ digestive systems are not ready for solid food until they are around six months and feeding them before this can cause constipation or make them more likely to catch an illness. For this reason alone, you should not give your young baby butter.
From about six months old, babies should be offered nutritious, iron-rich solid foods. Butter doesn’t fit this bill because it is almost all saturated fat. If butter replaces more nutritious foods, babies may not get the vitamins and minerals they need.
Butter is the latest in a long line of beliefs about certain foods making babies sleep longer at night. It was once thought that adding cereal or crushed arrowroot biscuits in bottle of milk before bedtime would make them sleep longer. Research found this did not increase sleep at all.
Similarly, there is no evidence that giving babies butter before bed makes them sleep longer.
In fact, research shows the foods babies eat make no difference to night waking.
What else can I try?
Waking overnight doesn’t necessarily mean a baby is hungry. And stopping breastfeeds or bottle feeds overnight doesn’t necessarily reduce night waking.
Your baby could be too hot or cold, or need a nappy change. But some babies continue to wake at night even without an obvious problem.
The good news is, sleeping is a skill babies develop naturally as they grow.
Behavioural sleep interventions, known as “sleep training”, are not very effective in increasing overnight sleep. In one study, sleep training did not reduce the number of night wakes and only increased the length of the longest sleep by about 16 minutes. Sleep training is especially not recommended for babies under six months.
Look after yourself
If you’re missing out on sleep at night, try to have small naps during the day while your baby sleeps. Ask friends and family to do some chores to allow you to nap.
If your baby is crying and you find yourself getting overwhelmed it is OK to put your baby down somewhere safe (like a cot or baby mat) and take some time to settle yourself.
If your baby’s sleep pattern changes significantly or they haven’t slept at all for more than a day, or if your baby seems to have pain or a fever see your doctor, or family and child health nurse, as soon as possible.
Some helpful resources
If you think your baby is not sleeping well because of a breastfeeding problem, the Australian Breastfeeding Association has a national helpline. The association can also advise on co-sleeping.
The charity Little Sparklers provides peer support for parents, including someone to chat to, about baby sleep. It also has helpful resources.
UNICEF has resources about caring for your baby at night. And the UK-based Baby Sleep Info Source (Basis) provides evidence-based information about babies and sleep.
Authors: Karleen Gribble, Adjunct Professor, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Western Sydney University
