Newborn Noises: Hiccups, Grunts, Sneezes and What Is Normal
By the Growbaby team · Published Aug 16, 2026
Written against AAP, CDC and WHO guidance. How we write these guides
At a glance
- Grunts, squeaks, sighs, sneezes and hiccups are all listed by the AAP as ordinary newborn noise.
- Hiccups are common, often follow overeating, and as the AAP puts it, bother parents more than babies.
- During a feed: change position, try for a burp, let them settle, and wait before resuming.
- Feeding before your baby is frantic makes hiccups less likely than any trick performed afterwards.
- Spit-up is usually not a concern and almost never involves choking, coughing or discomfort.
A newborn is a noisy object, and almost none of the noise means anything is wrong. The AAP's own description of newborn behaviour lists grunts, squeaks, sighs, sneezes and hiccups together as the ordinary repertoire, alongside crying, and most of it is a reaction to whatever just happened in the room.
That is worth knowing at three in the morning, because the alternative is lying awake cataloguing sounds. This page covers what the noises are, what to do about the one that has an actual technique attached, and the short list where the answer is to stop reading and call someone.
The ordinary repertoire
Besides crying when something is wrong, a newborn produces a wide variety of grunts, squeaks, sighs, sneezes and hiccups. The AAP frames these as reactions to disturbances around them, which is the useful part: a shrill sound or a strong smell can be all it takes to make a newborn jump, or squeak, or cry.
The same goes for the startling. A baby who flings their arms out at a door closing is not frightened in the way an adult would be; they are running a reflex, and it settles over the first months as the nervous system does.
None of this is a symptom list to check your baby against. It is the opposite: the noises are the background, and what matters is the small set of things underneath that are not background, which the last section covers.
Hiccups, the one with a technique
Most babies hiccup, often after overeating, and the AAP's summary of how much this matters is the line worth quoting: usually this bothers parents more than the infant. A hiccuping baby is generally not distressed, and hiccups do not need to be stopped for their own sake.
When they arrive mid-feed they are worth managing, because a hiccuping baby feeds badly. The AAP's steps are to change your baby's position, try to get them to burp, or help them relax, and then wait until the hiccups have gone before resuming. If they have not gone in five to ten minutes, try resuming for a few minutes anyway, which usually stops them.
Prevention beats any of that. If your baby hiccups often, feed them while they are calm and before they are extremely hungry: a frantic feed brings in more air, and less air means fewer hiccups. That is one habit rather than a trick performed afterwards, and it is the only thing on this page that reliably reduces how often they happen.
- Change position, try for a burp, help them settle
- Wait for the hiccups to pass before resuming the feed
- Still going after 5 to 10 minutes? Resume for a few minutes; that usually ends them
- Feed before your baby is desperate, which prevents more than it cures
Spit-up is not vomiting
Spit-up is the other thing that alarms new parents disproportionately, and the AAP is reassuring about it in specific terms: it is usually no cause for concern, and it almost never involves choking, coughing, discomfort or danger to your child.
The everyday version is milk that reappears easily, without effort, often with a burp, in a baby who is otherwise content and gaining weight. It looks like more than it is, because a tablespoon spreads impressively across a shoulder.
What separates that from something worth asking about is not the volume but the baby: forceful vomiting, distress, refusing to feed, or a baby who is not gaining. That is a conversation with your paediatrician rather than a judgement to make from an article.
The cross-eyed weeks
One newborn oddity that worries families more than it should: when you are farther away, a newborn's eyes may wander and give a cross-eyed appearance. The AAP says not to worry about this during the first couple of months, and it resolves as eye control develops.
The instruction attached to it is a real one though. If it has not resolved, bring it to your paediatrician's attention rather than continuing to wait, because this is one of the few newborn quirks with a follow-up attached.
When to stop reading and call
Nothing above is a reason to call anyone. These are: breathing that looks laboured rather than merely noisy, a colour change around the lips, a baby who is limp or unusually hard to wake, forceful vomiting, refusing feeds, or a newborn who seems unwell rather than unsettled.
The distinction that carries most of the weight is unwell versus unsettled. A newborn making a great deal of noise while feeding well and alert between times is doing newborn things. A quiet baby who will not feed is the one to act on, and quiet is the direction parents are least primed to worry about.
In the first weeks, a fever is its own category and belongs with a doctor rather than with any threshold you read online.
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Frequently asked questions
Yes. Most babies hiccup, often after overeating, and the AAP's own framing is that hiccups usually bother parents more than the infant. They do not need to be stopped for the baby's sake.
The order matters more than the individual moves: settle first, feed second. Reposition, burp, let them relax, and only go back to the bottle or breast once the hiccups have stopped, because a hiccuping baby feeds badly and swallows more air doing it. Five to ten minutes is the point at which resuming anyway tends to work better than waiting longer.
Feed while your baby is calm and before they are extremely hungry. A frantic feed takes in more air, and that is what makes hiccups more likely, so this does more than anything you try afterwards.
Because that is the ordinary newborn repertoire. The AAP lists grunts, squeaks, sighs, sneezes and hiccups together as normal, mostly as reactions to whatever is happening around them, down to a sudden sound or a strong smell.
Usually not. The AAP describes it as generally no cause for concern, and says it almost never involves choking, coughing, discomfort or danger. What is worth raising is forceful vomiting, distress, refusing feeds or poor weight gain, none of which is ordinary spit-up.
In the first couple of months, yes: a newborn's eyes may wander when you are farther away, and the AAP says not to worry about it then. If it has not resolved after that, bring it to your paediatrician rather than waiting longer.
Sources
This guide is for general informational purposes only. Growbaby is not a medical device and does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Every baby develops at their own pace; for any question or concern about your baby's health or development, always consult your pediatrician or another qualified healthcare provider.