Newborn hiccups are almost always normal and happen because your baby’s nervous system and diaphragm are still maturing. Most newborns hiccup multiple times a day, sometimes for 10 minutes or longer, and the frequency tends to decrease naturally as they grow through the first year of life. As alarming as it can look, those little spasms are typically a sign that your baby’s body is developing exactly as it should.
What’s Happening Inside Your Baby’s Body
A hiccup is an involuntary contraction of the diaphragm, the dome-shaped muscle that sits below the lungs and powers every breath. In adults, the diaphragm works smoothly and predictably. In newborns, the nerve that controls it (running from the brain down through the chest) is still fine-tuning its signals. The result is occasional misfires that cause the diaphragm to clamp down suddenly, snapping the vocal cords shut and producing that familiar “hic” sound.
This isn’t a design flaw. A 2019 study from University College London found that each hiccup-related diaphragm contraction triggers a distinct burst of electrical activity in a newborn’s brain: two large brainwaves followed by a third. Researchers believe this feedback loop helps the baby’s brain learn to monitor and eventually control the breathing muscles voluntarily. In other words, every bout of hiccups may be training your baby’s brain to coordinate breathing.
Hiccups Start Before Birth
If you felt rhythmic, repetitive twitches during pregnancy, especially in the third trimester, those were likely hiccups too. Babies in the womb take “practice breaths,” inhaling amniotic fluid into their lungs, which causes the diaphragm to contract. This rehearsal helps the respiratory system develop and is also a sign that the brain and spinal cord are functioning properly. So by the time your baby arrives, hiccupping is already a well-practiced reflex.
Common Triggers After Birth
While the underlying cause is an immature nervous system, certain everyday situations make hiccups more likely:
- Swallowing air during feeding. Whether breastfeeding or bottle-feeding, babies gulp air along with milk. That air expands the stomach, which sits right below the diaphragm, and the pressure can set off a spasm. A poor latch, a fast-flow bottle nipple, or feeding a very hungry (and therefore frantic) baby all increase air intake.
- A full stomach. Overfeeding or feeding too quickly stretches the stomach and pushes up against the diaphragm. Smaller, more frequent feedings can reduce this pressure.
- Sudden temperature changes. A drop in temperature, like being undressed for a diaper change or moving from a warm room to a cooler one, can trigger the diaphragm to contract.
- Fussiness and crying. When babies cry hard, they swallow extra air and their breathing becomes irregular, both of which can kick off a round of hiccups.
How to Help During a Bout
Most hiccup episodes resolve on their own within 5 to 10 minutes. If they last longer than that, try resuming feeding for a few minutes. The swallowing motion can help relax the diaphragm and reset the rhythm. Offering a pacifier works the same way: the sucking and swallowing pattern calms the nerve signals firing the diaphragm.
Burping your baby midway through a feeding (not just at the end) helps release trapped air before the stomach gets too distended. If you’re bottle-feeding, holding your baby at a slight upright angle and using a slow-flow nipple can cut down on the amount of air swallowed. For breastfeeding, making sure the latch is deep enough that your baby isn’t gulping air around the nipple makes a noticeable difference.
One important note: the folk remedies that work for adults, like startling someone, holding their breath, or drinking water upside down, should never be used on a newborn. These can be dangerous for an infant and aren’t effective anyway.
When Hiccups Signal Something Else
In rare cases, very frequent hiccups that seem to cause your baby distress can be associated with gastroesophageal reflux, where stomach acid flows back into the esophagus and irritates the diaphragm. Simple reflux is extremely common in babies and usually harmless on its own. It becomes a concern only when it’s paired with other symptoms.
Watch for these signs, which suggest the reflux may need medical attention:
- Poor weight gain or refusal to feed
- Projectile vomiting, where stomach contents shoot out forcefully
- Spitting up green, yellow, or blood-tinged fluid
- Persistent coughing or difficulty breathing
- Extreme irritability during or after every feeding
- Blood in the stool
- Low energy or unusual lethargy
A baby who hiccups frequently but is otherwise happy, feeding well, and gaining weight is almost certainly fine. The hiccups are far more bothersome to you than to your baby. Most infants don’t even seem to notice them.
When They’ll Slow Down
Hiccups are most frequent in the newborn period and the first few months of life, when the nervous system is doing its heaviest development. As the nerve pathways controlling the diaphragm mature, the episodes become shorter and less frequent. Most parents notice a significant drop by around 6 to 12 months. Some toddlers still get occasional bouts, but nothing like the newborn frequency. By that point, the brain has largely mastered voluntary breathing control, and the diaphragm no longer misfires as easily.