Baby hiccups are almost always harmless and will stop on their own within a few minutes. The average hiccup episode in infants lasts about eight minutes, and newborns hiccup so frequently that studies have found they spend roughly 2.5% of their monitored time doing it. That said, watching your baby hiccup repeatedly can feel unsettling, and there are a few simple things you can do to help move things along.
Why Babies Hiccup So Often
A hiccup is an involuntary spasm of the diaphragm, the dome-shaped muscle beneath the lungs that controls breathing. When the diaphragm contracts suddenly, the vocal cords snap shut, producing that familiar “hic” sound. In adults, this is an occasional nuisance. In babies, it happens far more often because their nervous system and digestive tract are still maturing. The nerves that control the diaphragm are more easily triggered in the first few months of life.
The most common triggers are swallowing air during feeding, eating too quickly, or a full stomach pressing up against the diaphragm. Overfeeding and sudden temperature changes can also set off a bout. None of these causes are dangerous, and hiccups don’t cause babies pain or breathing difficulty, even though they look uncomfortable from the outside.
What to Do During a Hiccup Episode
If your baby starts hiccupping mid-feed, pause the feeding. Change their position and try to get a burp out. Often that’s enough to interrupt the spasm cycle. If the hiccups continue, wait until they stop before offering the breast or bottle again. If they haven’t resolved within 5 to 10 minutes, resuming the feeding for a few minutes usually does the trick, since the rhythmic sucking and swallowing can help relax the diaphragm.
Outside of feeding times, offering a pacifier can work the same way. The steady sucking motion helps regulate the diaphragm without adding more milk to an already full stomach. You can also try simply holding your baby upright against your chest and gently rubbing or patting their back. This position helps any trapped air rise and release.
Three Burping Positions That Help
- Over the shoulder: Hold your baby upright with their head resting on your shoulder. Support their back with one hand and gently pat with the other.
- Sitting on your lap: Sit the baby on your lap facing away from you. Use one hand to support their chest and chin, and pat their back with the other.
- Across your lap: Lay the baby face-down across your legs with their head slightly higher than their chest. Gently pat or rub their back in a circular motion.
Preventing Hiccups Before They Start
Since swallowed air is the most common trigger, reducing the amount of air your baby takes in during feeds is the single most effective prevention strategy. For breastfed babies, this means making sure the latch is deep enough that they aren’t gulping air around the nipple. Feeding in a more upright position also helps.
For bottle-fed babies, a few adjustments make a noticeable difference. Use a slow-flow nipple so your baby can control the pace without gulping. Keep the bottle mostly horizontal, tipping it just enough to fill the nipple with milk rather than holding it straight up, which forces milk out faster than many babies can handle. As the feed progresses and the bottle empties, gradually tilt it more upright so the nipple stays full and your baby isn’t sucking in air pockets. Keep your baby’s head and neck in a straight, neutral position throughout.
Feeding smaller amounts more frequently can also help. A stomach that’s stretched to capacity pushes up on the diaphragm, making spasms more likely. If your baby tends to hiccup after every feed, try offering slightly less milk and feeding again a bit sooner.
What Not to Do
Many classic hiccup remedies that work fine for adults are unsafe for babies. Do not give your baby water, especially in the first six months, as their kidneys aren’t ready to process it and it can interfere with nutrition. Gripe water and other herbal drops are sometimes marketed for hiccups, but they aren’t regulated and may contain ingredients that aren’t appropriate for infants. Startling a baby to “scare away” hiccups, pressing on their fontanelle, or holding their breath are all dangerous and ineffective. The safest approach is always the gentlest one: reposition, burp, and wait.
When Hiccups Naturally Decrease
Hiccups are most frequent in newborns and young infants because the nervous system pathways controlling the diaphragm are still developing. As your baby’s digestive system matures and their feeding coordination improves over the first several months, hiccup episodes become less common on their own. Most parents notice a significant drop-off by around 6 to 12 months, though occasional hiccups are perfectly normal well beyond that.
Signs That Warrant a Call to Your Pediatrician
If a hiccup episode lasts longer than 5 to 10 minutes and nothing you try seems to help, it’s reasonable to have your baby checked. Other reasons to reach out include hiccups that seem to cause genuine distress, episodes that interfere with feeding or sleeping on a regular basis, or hiccups accompanied by spitting up, arching of the back, or fussiness after meals. These can sometimes point to reflux, which is treatable. For the vast majority of babies, though, hiccups are just a noisy, harmless part of having a brand-new body.