Why Should I Wake My Baby by 7:00 AM
Waking your baby no later than about 7:00 AM helps entrain their circadian rhythm, improves day/night sleep consolidation ( so no more sleep gaps!), supports healthy naps and feeding timing, and reduces the chance of late-night “catch-up” sleep that disrupts the household. Below I explain the why (with research), give practical how-tos, share what the research and experts say about longer-term effects into the teen years.
ouch… waking up at 7am can be hard ( in the beginning)
Stop, before you hit the snooze button
What the research says
1. Light exposure and a morning wake time help set baby’s circadian clock
Infants’ circadian systems are light-sensitive from early life; exposure to morning daylight strongly helps entrain the ‘suprachiasmatic nucleus’ (the body clock) and the melatonin rhythm. Getting babies up during daylight hours, rather than letting them sleep through most of the morning, gives a clear daytime signal that helps them consolidate nighttime sleep later. If you live close to me, you will know that the mornings through the winter are not that light, however, it is still important that you wake your little one up by 7am.
2. Consistent daytime schedule + routines = better sleep overall
A predictable daily schedule (regular wake time, naps, bedtime) and consistent bedtime routines are associated with better mood, emotional regulation, and more consolidated night sleep in young children. Routines create reliable cues for sleep/wake transitions; waking by 7:00 AM makes it possible to space naps and an early bedtime appropriately.
3. Infant sleep in the first year supports cognitive and emotional development
Longer, better-consolidated sleep in infancy is prospectively linked to better cognitive and affective functioning. When daytime and nighttime sleep become misaligned (for example; baby naps too long in the late morning so they sleep late and then are awake late at night), it can reduce the amount and quality of restorative nighttime sleep that supports brain development. A consistent morning wake time helps avoid that misalignment. Even on the rough nights, letting them make up sleep in the morning can cause problems elsewhere.
What “letting them keep their own schedule” can look like and the possible downstream effects
Many parents let a naturally sleepy baby sleep in. sometimes that works fine short-term, but there are tradeoffs:
If a baby sleeps late into the morning, they often take later naps and have a pushed-back bedtime. That can create a cycle of late nights and “catch-up” naps that fragment nighttime sleep. Clinical and longitudinal studies show that persistent irregular sleep patterns and difficulties initiating sleep in childhood are associated with increased risk of mood and behavioral problems in adolescence ( higher rates of symptoms of depression, ADHD and conduct problems). That doesn’t mean one season of late mornings will ruin a child. BUT chronic irregular schedules are a risk factor to be mindful of.
Parent/educator commentary and pediatric sleep experts consistently point out that permissive or very irregular sleep practices (including very late wake times) often translate into harder sleep transitions later and make school-age sleep routines more challenging. These sources include expert guidance and parent-facing summaries that report exactly those patterns.
In a nutshell: one or two mornings of late sleep aren’t a catastrophe. The point is avoiding an ongoing pattern that shifts the whole sleep day later and later.
Practical reasons 7:00 AM is a good “latest” wake time and how to do it
Why 7:00 AM (rather than 9:00 or noon)?
Day/night contrast: Wake by 7am so baby experiences a full morning of light and activity before naps, bonus points if you can get out in fresh air. This helps melatonin timing.
Nap spacing: A 7 am wake allows properly spaced naps (morning nap around 9am, afternoon nap around 12.20pm) and an earlier, achievable bedtime (often between 6-8pm for many infants/toddlers).
Household rhythm: It aligns family routines (work, meals, daylight exposure) and reduces the chance the baby will “sleep the day away” and then be awake late. If you have more than one child, you will NOT be sleeping when the baby sleeps with this pattern. Infact, if you have a few children, you would barely be seeing at all with this pattern.
Feeding and growth: For younger infants, waking for feeds during the day ensures calories are spread across the day and reduces overnight feed demand later on.
How to shift to a 7:00 AM wake (gentle and practical)
Gradual shifts: Move wake time earlier by 10–15 minutes every 2–3 days.
Use light: Open curtains / take a short outdoor walk shortly after wake time to deliver strong daytime light. (Light is a powerful entrainment signal.)
Short, deliberate wake windows: Keep the baby engaged after waking (feed, brief play, expose to daylight). Avoid resettling them back to long daytime sleep.
Nap hygiene: Don’t allow a single nap to run too late or too long - 1.5 hrs is sufficient and over time for the first nap, even shorter is ideal. Aim for consistent nap windows appropriate to age.
Early bedtime: Pair a 7am wake with an age-appropriate early bedtime (for many infants and toddlers that’s between 6:00–8:00pm), which promotes consolidated night sleep.
Common Questions related to this topic from clients
Q: Isn’t waking my baby mean they’ll be tired all day?
A: If you wake them gently and keep day feeds and naps well timed, they will adjust and end up with more consolidated nighttime sleep and better daytime alertness. The short-term grumpiness of a shift is usually worth the longer-term gains and they will be grumpy! they may also be more tired initially, this can be worrisome, but its also worth it.
Q: What about newborns who truly need frequent night feeds?
A: For medically necessary night feeds (especially early weeks), follow feeding guidance from your pediatrician. The 7am goal is most relevant once a baby begins to show a predictable day/night pattern (often several weeks to months old) and when parents are ready to work towards a routine.
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Research sources that support this post
Kok, E. Y. et al. — The role of light exposure in infant circadian rhythm development (2024). Shows how morning light exposure entrains infant circadian rhythms and supports day/night consolidation. SpringerLink
Mindell, J. A., et al. — Benefits of a bedtime routine in young children (2017). Demonstrates associations between routines and better sleep/mood regulation. PMC
Pittner, K., et al. — Sleep across the first year of life is prospectively associated with later cognitive and affective functioning (2023). Links better infant sleep with improved cognitive/affective outcomes. PMC
(Additional longitudinal evidence about childhood sleep patterns predicting adolescent mental-health outcomes: Touchette et al., 2024.)
