Why Do Newborns Breathe So Fast?

Doctors usually instruct the parents to observe and keep tabs on the breathing patterns of your baby. 

Why do they breathe so fast?

Rapid breathing and panting are two things that are predominant in newborns. Since the baby has just come out of the womb after 9 months of long sleep, he tries to adapt and get habituated with the world outside. Basically, his body tries to get accustomed to the new surroundings and that’s exactly what brings in a change in the breathing pattern.

Newborns have a higher rate of breathing than the adults. Their chest cavity gets filled up completely with air, unlike adults. There are no air pockets present, so they don’t have air reserves, so their breathing rate is too high. With age, the body begins to mature up too, so they will develop air pockets naturally and their breathing will normalise soon after. As long as your baby keeps smiling and giggling you shouldn’t be worried at all.

Watch out for the breathing pattern at night:

Newborns have a tendency of breathing rapidly and with each breath, their breaths get deeper and slower. They breathe in cycles and this is called periodic breathing. Sometimes they also pause while breathing.

If you’re still worried, you can do the following:

-Listen to your baby’s breathing pattern by placing your ear next to the baby’s mouth and nose and hear the sound of their breath.

-Observe your baby’s breathing pattern by seeing the up and down movement of the chest.

-If you want to feel those little breaths, just put your cheek close to your baby’s nose and feel those warm little breaths.