Newborn hiccups are almost always harmless, and most bouts stop on their own within 5 to 10 minutes. They’re one of the most common things new parents notice (and worry about), but they rarely bother the baby as much as they bother you. That said, a few simple feeding adjustments can make them less frequent, and knowing what to do mid-hiccup can help them resolve faster.
Why Newborns Hiccup So Often
Hiccups are involuntary contractions of the diaphragm, the dome-shaped muscle that controls breathing. In newborns, the nervous system circuits that regulate this muscle are still developing. The body’s sensory wiring isn’t fully built at birth, so the diaphragm is more easily triggered into spasms by things like a full stomach, swallowed air, or a sudden temperature change.
Hiccups actually begin in the womb as early as nine weeks of gestation, making them one of the earliest patterns of activity a fetus develops. A 2019 study from University College London found that each hiccup triggers a large wave of brain signals in a newborn’s cortex. The researchers believe these brain waves help babies learn to connect the physical sensation of their diaphragm contracting with the “hic” sound they hear, gradually building the brain’s ability to monitor and eventually control breathing. In other words, hiccups may serve a real developmental purpose. They tend to become less frequent as a baby’s nervous system matures over the first several months.
Feeding Strategies That Reduce Hiccups
Most newborn hiccups are triggered during or after feeding, usually because the baby swallowed air along with milk. The single most effective prevention strategy is to keep feedings calm and unhurried. Feed your baby before they become extremely hungry and start crying, because a frantic, gulping baby swallows far more air. A calm baby latches better and feeds more steadily.
Frequent burping is the other key tool. For bottle-fed babies, pause to burp after every 1 to 2 ounces of formula. Some pediatric guidelines suggest every 2 to 3 ounces, but if your baby is hiccup-prone, going on the more frequent end helps. For breastfed babies, burp when you switch breasts and again when the feeding is finished. These pauses do double duty: they release trapped air and naturally slow down the pace of the feeding, which means less gulping overall.
If you’re bottle-feeding, the angle of the bottle matters. Tilt it so the nipple stays fully filled with milk rather than half-air. A slow-flow nipple can also help a newborn who tends to eat too fast. For breastfeeding, making sure your baby has a deep, proper latch reduces the amount of air they take in around the nipple.
What to Do When Hiccups Start
If hiccups begin during a feeding, stop and change your baby’s position. Shift them upright against your shoulder and try to get a burp out. The pause and position change alone will slow gulping and reduce swallowed air. If the hiccups don’t stop within 5 to 10 minutes, try resuming the feeding for a few minutes. This usually settles them.
If hiccups start outside of feeding, offering a pacifier can help. The rhythmic sucking motion relaxes the diaphragm and often stops the spasms. You don’t need to do anything elaborate. Most hiccup episodes resolve on their own without any intervention at all.
Remedies to Avoid
Many traditional hiccup “cures” that work (or at least feel harmless) for adults are genuinely dangerous for newborns. Never try to startle a baby to stop hiccups. Do not give a newborn water, gripe water, or any liquid other than breast milk or formula unless specifically directed by a pediatrician. Babies under six months should not receive water at all, as it can disrupt their electrolyte balance. Pressing on a baby’s fontanelle (soft spot) or holding their breath are also unsafe folk remedies that circulate online.
The safest approach is always the simplest: adjust position, burp, offer a pacifier, or just wait it out.
When Hiccups May Signal Something Else
In rare cases, very frequent hiccups that consistently interfere with feeding or sleeping can be a sign of gastroesophageal reflux. Babies with reflux often have other symptoms alongside the hiccups: frequent spitting up, arching their back during or after feeds, coughing or choking while eating, and general fussiness that doesn’t settle easily. The hiccups alone aren’t concerning, but hiccups combined with several of these other signs are worth mentioning to your pediatrician.
Isolated hiccup episodes, even if they happen several times a day, are a normal part of newborn life. They don’t hurt the baby, they don’t interfere with breathing, and they typically become less frequent by the time a baby is 6 to 12 months old as the nervous system matures and the diaphragm becomes less reactive.