It is not at all uncommon to have a hiccupping infant. If an infant is hiccupping, he is almost always OK. Babies will hiccup on a regular basis, most often when they become stimulated or just after they eat. Hiccupping for an infant is a natural and normal reflex that parents are often surprised by. The fact of the matter is that your baby probably even started to hiccup before he was born. Rest assured that, even when your infant is hiccupping, he is OK. Having said all of that, the fact remains that it can be frightening to see a hiccupping infant, particularly if the infant seems to be fussy, or not to feel well.

We don’t know exactly why it is that newborn babies tend to hiccup more than older children. Most experts agree that an infant will hiccup largely because of the immaturity of the infant’s internal organs. As his organs mature, he is less and less likely to hiccup.

Some infant hiccupping will only last for a minute or two. Some infant hiccupping can last as much as an hour. Hiccups don’t bother your infant. Hiccups do, however, tend to bother parents! The best thing that you can do when your infant is hiccupping is to be patient. Eventually, your infant will stop hiccupping. Some experts suggest that frequent burping during feeding will help your hiccupping infant, but this hasn’t necessarily been proven to be the case. Sometimes, you might be able to distract your hiccupping infant, which may make it possible for your hiccupping infant to stop.

If you are concerned about your hiccupping infant and wondering if he is OK, it is certainly all right to contact your health care provider. Your health care provider can ask you about other symptoms or difficulties that your infant is having. If your infant has non-stop hiccupping that makes it difficult to eat, for example, your health care provider may want to examine your hiccupping infant to make sure that he is OK.

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